#-> about the time someone who works at the starbucks i go to shouted ''bye kingsley!!'' leaving my store after paying for something

[vanweezer]

[squints at person who knows me as has acknowledged me] i didnt know you still assumed i existed

[buckyhoney-library]

Hey so I'm new to the whole 'requesting' thing. Anyways I have an option Bucky has a secret girlfriend. This'll take place between post-Winter soldier and post- civil war. Team cap has to go somewhere and Bucky wants to say goodbye to someone. Once they reach the readers and her and buck do some sort of act of love (hug, somethin special) and the team realizes that it's his girlfriend Thanks doll🖖✌️

Secret Girlfriend

A/N: This was a super cute idea 

Warnings: soft!bucky

Words: 1k

“Who’s he talking to? I thought we were his only friends?” Sam questioned, looking back as Bucky picked up his phone and left the room. Steve’s eyes following Bucky’s movements as he slowly paced the hallway.

“I don’t know,” Steve shrugged, returning to packing his suitcase.

“I’m leaving for three weeks- tonight actually,” Bucky’s smile gets smaller as he informs you that you’d be without him for an extended amount of time. You stayed quiet, not knowing how to respond. You knew that stuff like this would happen when dating an avenger. Having to leave at a moment’s notice to save the world, there was a part of you that wished Bucky would have stayed. Coming up with an excuse to not go, but that would only bring an unnecessary concern to Steve.

“We got the orders a couple of hours ago; I wish I didn’t have to go.” Bucky huffs.

“Is there a way that I can see you before? Just to say goodbye?” You managed to hold back the tears. This would be the first time Bucky will be gone this long. 

          The two of you met just after he returned from Wakanda. You were working at the coffee shop he would stop by every morning. While making friendly conversation with you, he began to know you better, leading Bucky to feel comfortable enough to ask you to dinner. Of course, you said yes.

That was almost five months ago. Bucky having his own place, allowed him to be able to keep this part of his life private. It’s not that he didn’t want them to know, but it was something that he wanted to be sure of before sharing. You were also the only thing at the moment that wasn’t filled with history or was work-related. You had been his get-away from the fast-paced life of avenging.

“Yes, I’ll come by before I leave. Will you be home in an hour?” He asks, Bucky knew he needed to see you beforehand and a phone call wasn’t going to cut it.

“I’ll be at work, but you can still stop by. I’ll take my fifteen when you come in.” You respond eagerly. This gave Bucky a good excuse to stop before leaving for Germany.

“Perfect. I’ll see you soon, Darling.” His smile reappearing. “I’ll see you soon, just text me before you get here, bye Buck.” You hang up and start to get ready for your shift.

When he returns to the room to finish his packing, he was greeted by Sam and Steve with curious expressions on their faces.

“Who was that?” Steve gestured to his phone. Bucky just shrugs, “Old friend,” Sam chuckles to himself,

“Must be a really good friend if they made you actually smile instead of bruting in the corner,”

.

          The van was all packed and everyone was inside. Sam and Steve taking the front seat, Nat and Bucky in the second row, leaving Clint and Wanda in the back row.

“Can we stop for coffee?” He as innocently as Steve drives out of the compound.

“Yeah, I think there is a Starbucks-“

“No, there is a coffee shop just off exist thirteen, like a block from my apartment.” He states, Sam looks back at him, raising his eyebrow with growing suspicion.

“Yeah, I guess that’s okay,” Steve replies. The car ride there was filled with small chatter between them. Bucky pulled his phone out to text you, letting you know he was almost there.

“Who’s ‘darling’?” Nat chuckles, glancing over at him.

“Nobody.” Steve and Sam look at each other, Sam starting to connect the dots. He doesn’t say anything but stays quiet trying to keep from teasing the shit out of him.

          When they pulled up the coffee shop, Bucky eagerly gets out. Leaving the rest of the team watch him as he went inside, but not getting in line.

“What is he doing?”

“I think Bucky has a special friend.” Sam teases, leaving the rest of the car to start theorizing.

          You put your apron on the rack as you get the text that Bucky was here. You see the car full of avengers pull up. Quickly fixing any smudges of makeup and fly-away hairs, you walked away from the counter. His mouth grows into a huge smile as he catches glimpses of you from outside. He takes your hands, bringing them to his lips, kissing them gently.

“Hi, darling.” His voice had softened since seeing you, losing the low grumble he usually has with the team. You truly bring out the inner softy in him.

“Hi,” You match his softness. He pulls you into a tight hug, remembering why he was even visiting you at work.

“How long before I get to hug you again?” You mumble against his chest. He kisses the top of my head pulling away, but not letting go of your waist.

“Three weeks, but I’m hoping for two.” Your face sinks into a pout, he moves his hands to cup your face. Slightly squishing it, causing him to giggle.

“You know your friends are looking,” You see past him, their eyes are glued to the two of you.

“He does have a girlfriend!” Nat shouts, they all watch as Bucky embraces you and kisses your hands.

“That sneaky bastard.” Clint laughs. Sam and Steve nod in approval as Bucky stares back at them.

Looking back at you, Bucky states,

“It’s okay, I knew we couldn’t hide it for much longer. They were getting suspicious about who was making me smile.” You grin at the thought of being able to get past, what left like vibranium, walls that the super solider had built up.

“I’m going to miss you so much; I’ll call as much as I can.” He looks at you with the most tender eyes. You nod,

“I’ll be counting on it.” You say in a warning tone. Instead of planting a kiss on your head, Bucky places the kiss on your lips. You kiss him back, soaking it all up before he pulls away.

“I’ll see you when you get home!” He smiles and nods, preparing for all the questions he was about to receive when he reentered the car.

[polygamyff]

50. Part 5

I am so thankful my mother bought me up with morals because this is not it. I just want to go home now. I think Robyn has heard enough now; she needs to go home. I am so quiet with Joy walking back to the living area “I was thinking” I can’t even stop myself “you said you kept money away from Marquis, so why not use that to help Malik?” Joy just stared at me, she is not saying a thing “am I wrong?” I said, I am confused “you know what Joy, I will never disrespect you in any way or form because that is not me but, when it comes to my family I will do it but I am not telling Maurice anything, you have no heart so you tell him. But I think you need to speak up, Marquis is vile but you could have changed him. Maurice was not a nice man, he has his sides to him he can use his power. You said he wanted you, you could have used that and changed. I have lost count the times I have left Maurice, because I knew money was never going to make me happy. I just can’t believe you went through that, gave birth to a child to let someone else love it. But like I said, I won’t be telling Maurice a thing, this is on you Joy. You should be a woman about it” walking off, I don’t know where I am going but I need some air after all of that. You know what, Malik has been failed as a child and I will do my best to make sure he succeeds because that is awful. Maurice has been failed too. Nalah, I think she was lucky, she didn’t get it like the boys did because both of them didn’t have the best at all. Joy is trash and now I feel the same way as Maurice on this, I can’t defend that at all. Marquisis trash too but I learned to live with it, I mean she’s told me he is taking something so strong, that is addictive. He will be or must be now addicted to that, he is going to be reliant on that so his days are numbered but Maurice is going to take it so bad, I don’t want that but it’s going to happen and I will be there for him. I feel a little bad that I didn’t believe Maurice about his mom, maybe I am just too trusting but I honestly was going to argue with him until he learned to respect her but he was right, she was trash and I feel bad about not believing him.

I found my way back, I mean a few wrong turns but I am here now “hey” I said “you was gone an hour? What the hell?” Maurice said, well this is awkward “playing catch up with Joy?” Marquis said, I laughed nervously “Reign fell back and banged her head” I was wondering why she is clinging onto Maurice “Oh no, is she ok?” Reign saw me and then the water works started again “awww baby, it’s ok. I am sure daddy gave you lots of cuddles too” taking Reign from Maurice “I am sorry, I left you for too long didn’t I” placing Reign over my shoulder “there, there Reign, it’s ok. Where is her pacifier?” turning to Maurice “erm” he touched his pockets like that helped “can you get me one please” turning back around to sit down, touching the back of Reign’ head just to check she hasn’t got any bumps “I feel bad now, I should have put something soft down” Marquis said “oh don’t be, kids of course are going to have bumps. You have done enough” does Maurice want to drag his feet any slower, Joy is here finally “why are you looking in my bag?” Maurice looked at me “because you keep them here sometimes” shaking my head at him “I guess not” he put my bag down, Reign rested her head on my shoulder “it’s ok Reign” touching her forehead “can you also get me the Tylenol, she has temperature that is also in her baby bag Maurice” he scoffed “anything else?” he stared at me “not right now no, thank you” he makes life difficult because the bag is right next to mine but he proceeded to pick mine. Watching Marquis just staring at Maurice, they need to learn that Maurice listens to me, we are equal in this.

Laughing at Reign side eyeing Maurice “did you really have to taste her food?” she is not amused by what he did “I just thought try it and this is trash, this is supposed it chicken pie? My god, Reign what nastiness is your mom feeding you” rolling my eyes “she likes it, it is for her. Just feed her” Marquis has done nothing but stare at Maurice, he hasn’t seen this side to him because we don’t stay with them long enough “honestly, you didn’t have to go all out. I feel like it’s Christmas” Marquis laughed “it is to me, it feels like Christmas, it came early for us. I am just happy to spend time with her, you know. To see a grandchild of mine, it makes me happy and she is such a joy” smiling at Marquis, since speaking to Joy I feel so different about her. I can’t even comprehend what woman would do such a thing, but I need to just stop this because honestly it won’t help if Joy was to bring it up because I wouldn’t want Maurice lashing out at his mom, I know he has a temper “you’re such a good father Maurice, it’s nice to see” Joy said “yeah, she deserves the world and more. I mean so does Robyn, sometimes” Maurice said laughing “you have outdone yourself with Robyn, she is amazing and has changed a lot in this family. Don’t you think Marquis?” Joy sat back in her chair, not sure if she is being funny about this or just being kind “I think Robyn will look after my son, and I can’t fault her for that” pulling a face “I think Maurice looks after me” touching the back of his head “when I am working and coming home, he cooks for me, puts Reign to sleep, picks her from day care. He takes care of me, don’t you?” Maurice grinned “listen, don’t air this out. It’s meant to be a secret Bonita, come on” I cooed out “don’t get shy now, he is a good boy. I got to thank his mother for showing him love” I stared at Joy’ face “I guess we should” Marquis added, Joy’ face softened but she is a bitch and I hate to say it.

Marquis was the first to take Reign, he is gone now “you think we should bring my dad back, he can be our babysitter? I mean look at him?” Maurice placed his arm behind me as he turned in the seat to face me “he is rather good at it, don’t you think?” I said smiling at Maurice “I agree, maybe you and I. You know, number 2” shaking my head “nope, how about no. Why do you want another so much now? Let Reign have her shine, I want my daughter to be about two, give or take around that” Maurice licked his lips “because I feel like it’s a good occasion, also I can’t help myself. Shall we go for a little drive in my car” nodding my head slowly “why not, but let’s go now. Not late” Maurice got up from the seat “I will get changed then, I will be back” I sighed out getting up also “thank you beautiful, the meal was so nice!!” hearing Maurice shout, the chef smiled at him. I mean imagine not cooking in your own home, it’s trash “you came into my home wanting answers and now you think you’re ok to say what you said knowing I wasn’t a mother to him?” Joy said “is it your home? Or is it Reign’ home? Or better yet Marquis’ home. I see evil in you, it’s bad vibes. Least some people with age stop, don’t come for me and my family because trust me I will be more of a woman about things. I will be civil and if, if Maurice wants to know you after you tell him everything, then maybe but right now, you and Marquis are disgusting. Don’t come for me, I won’t come for you. Simple. I am not hearing this sob story after all this, you have a dangerous mind just like Marquis. It’s toxic Joy, your whole persona on life. You need to speak to someone about it, where is your kids!? I know where they are, how does that work out” walking off, I snapped, and I shouldn’t have, and I now feel bad about it but I am just not feeling this aura around her.

I do miss Maurice driving like now, with him driving us around. He rarely does drive “before you met me, at Starbucks. What were you doing?” it’s a random thought that came to mind “I just woke up, so I thought I need to get some food. I was in the process of working out how to tell you the truth, but I was scared, I couldn’t lose you. Bonita, I couldn’t just let it go. So, I was holding off meeting you but my god, my heart dropped seeing. I was like oh shit, now what. You were so sweet, and you were so genuine when you saw me, the happiness. I just, it was a good day for us. You see this home here” Maurice pointed, looking out of the window “yes?” this is pretty home “that is Kellen’ home, he is hiding here. They don’t live far at all from us, on my dad’ money too but whatever. They all live there and abouts. Like none of them live far” this feels so good, to be driving fast with my man. No traffic around, or people. It’s peaceful “you look happy? You like Texas?” he asked “erm, I think it’s a place I can see myself moving too later in life. With you of course, I see you’re happy too. Daddy’s boy, your dad is staring at you constantly, he is not sure who this boy he is seeing” Maurice laughed “well I am in love, where did you and my mother go too huh? Do tell?” I wish he didn’t ask “just speaking, nothing important baby, I think I am ready to go though” I have had enough information for one day that I need a whole month to digest.

We didn’t particularly have a plan, we just got in the car and drove, but Maurice has just parked up on the side, I wish I was staying longer so we can have things to do but I want to go now. He turned off his car engine “you gon suck?” unbuckling my belt “excuse me? Boy bye, I don’t fuck on the first night” waving him off, he grabbed my hand laughing “just a little suck? What about a kiss to the tip” he dragged my arm over to him, pressing kisses to the back of my hand “like a kiss goodnight?” I laughed saying “yeah, like a goodnight kiss. I am joking, do you remember when I used your toothbrush when we stayed at my hotel?” Maurice rested his head on my hand “I do remember pootie, I was shocked. You helped me zip my suitcase in your boxers, because like I do. I bring too many things; I remember it all. I felt it then, I was like I am in love already. The following night I was like did I just push myself on this man, he wasn’t even ready and there was me initiating sex but you was so sweet with me” Maurice looked over at me “I was shocked, yes but it felt so good” I want the best for Maurice, I just want the world for him and I am sad that I know such things but it’s not my issue “why are you looking at me like that?” Maurice said, shaking my head laughing “nothing, we need to have some alone time. Like properly where I know Reign is ok, just happy” I said trying to divert the subject “mhmm, you just stared me. Gave me that weird face” he placed my hand back in my lap, he knows me well “I was thinking, you know like I say finding out you was married was the worst part of my time or life or whatever, I was thinking. It’s actually not, it’s when you have sickle cell crisis, when you go through it. Those are the worst times of my life, when you get so skinny and you’re in pain. I think finding out you had it really killed me inside, because you’re my everything and I don’t want to lose that, I mean yes to know you was married hurt but the illness, kills me” Maurice cooed out “I’m pretty fucked up huh, but I think I did a lot Robyn. I got a daughter, I fell in love so if shit went sideways, I am happy. I never thought I would be a dad, and to be one now. You damn right I will be a goofy idiot with her, and you made that happen. Texas holds a lot for me, with you” he is right Texas does hold a lot for us.

Maurice is walking me to the bedroom, I find the home creepy and also you never know. Joy could kill me “she slept in my arms, my little angel. Joy made her bottle just right, I fed her and that was it. Look at her hand, just on my chest, she finds me comfy. Don’t you think?” Maurice does not know how to take Reign from his dad “she sure does dad; she is happy with you. Well it’s time to give her up, Robyn you do it” I knew he was going to say that “if you put her in my arms, I think that would be best” Marquis held her hand “grandad see you in the morning, I will be awake early for you. Please let me have her when she does, I can feed her” Marquis slowly placed Reign in my arms “it’s ok baby” she was not amused “yeah, Maurice can bring her out. We are going to bed now, aren’t we” looking at Maurice “uh yeah we are, probably no funny business. But goodnight” Marquis is too in awe to care “night” he said, this man can’t stop smiling. I honestly do not care, Maurice is not leaving me alone “goodnight” Joy said, smiling at her before walking off. I don’t feel safe or in the mood for sex, I was happier out there so Maurice can keep his ass in bed with me.

Pacing Reign’ blanket over her “does you bedroom door lock?” I pointed at the door “erm, yeah it does. But I lost the key, there is a spare key but then I need to call the housekeeper, but we home. We good” I laughed nervously “can you like get the key, lock the door. Thanks” Maurice frowned at me “erm right but why? We having sexy time?” I shrugged “I just want to know we have privacy please, also Krista text me, she said she thought Khaleesi ran off but she found her in Reign’ room sad, and she said she walked her and she is ok. Krista is so sweet, she called Jay a lazy man that snores too loudly, and then I asked Jay why she was angry, he fell asleep on the couch and she was trying to clean. But I am used to her, she is always texting me. So anyways, the key yes?” Maurice saluted me, I just feel uneasy because they are killers and also they don’t like me, I have become a person they don’t like so, what if I am next. I do not like Joy’ vibe, I don’t want to be judgemental but she is too confident in being a bitch, she has this horrible attitude since telling me.

[imaginethe-dragons]

Graffiti: Chapter One (discontinued)

Summary: While visiting family in Kansas, you run into someone. The only thing the both of you have in common is your fascination of abandoned places. Also the fact that you are from the same city and live in the same city.

Word Count: 3.9k

“{y/n}, this is going to be fun. Besides you’re going back to California tomorrow. This will be our last adventure until who knows when,” your best friend, Georgia, exclaimed, trying to convince you to go to an abandoned building her and your other best friend, Zach, found while you had been in Cali.

“This looks really sketchy, Georgia. What if we get kidnapped?” you asked her, looking at pictures she showed you. Zach laughed at you, swinging an arm around you.

“{y/n/n}, we’ll be fine. We went to it and looked around. It’s really fun and there’s awesome graffiti. We can take spray paint out there and you can put something up. I know your sketchbook is full of ideas by now,” Zach told you, practically on his knees in attempt to get you to agree.

“Okay, we can go! We’ll explore for a few hours and then I have to come back and pack up,” You agreed. The two squealed in excitement as you threw certain spray paint colors in your bag as well as masks so you don’t inhale it.

“I’ll drive!” Georgia yelled, grabbing her keys. You quickly remembered your sketchbook and then made it to the car. You hopped in the passenger’s seat and started flipping through your sketchbook to decide on what you wanted to do.

“I think I’m going to do this,” you said, showing Zach the page.

“What is it?” Georgia asked the two of you.

“It’s an eye and above it is the Audrey Hepburn quote that says ‘The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.’” Zach described to her.

Soon, Georgia pulled into a run down and secluded parking lot. The only other car there was a red Toyota Corolla. You grabbed your bag and walked towards the building.

“There’s a whole empty wall along the back,” Zach told you, leading the way into the building. You looked and saw the blank wall, mind running with the possibilities of what to do. Zach and Georgia set up the folding chairs they had brought while they watched you. Amused smiles sat on their faces as you went through the colors of paint you brought. You decided on one and put on a mask before you began your work.

You spent several hours working on various pieces, but the larger of the nine was a Frida Kahlo mural that took up a large portion of the wall. You smiled, taking individual pictures of the pieces. You turned your head to look at Zach and Georgia and how they would react but they weren’t there.

“Guys?” You called out. Your voice echoed around the building. Quickly, you put everything back in your bag. “Zach? Georgia? Come on guys this isn’t funny!” You said loudly.

“Shh, do you hear that?” You heard a voice ask.

“Zach? Is that you?” You asked, getting rather annoyed. Your phone rang loudly, causing you to jump from the sudden fright.

“Hey, my mom texted me and said she needed me at home. Georgia brought me,” Zach quickly explained.

“You didn’t think that you should have told me? Zach, how am I going to get home? We drove for miles!” You yelled into the phone.

“I’m sorry, {y/n}! Like really sorry!” Zach exclaimed.

“It’s okay, I’ll try and figure out how I’m going to get home,” you said angrily, hanging up before he could respond. You managed your way back to where you were earlier, among your art.

“Seriously, Sam. I think someone’s hear. I heard a voice yelling, how could you not?” A male voice asked. You whipped around to see who it was, but before you could see anything, you were knocked to the ground.

“Huh, looks like you were right,” another guy said, shining a light on you.

“Who’re you guys?” You asked in an aggressive voice. The one with the light flicked it off. “Wait. Sam? Colby?” You asked, recognizing two boys who your roommate was best friends with.

“Do we know you?” Colby asked you. You have never officially been introduced, but you saw them once or twice at parties.

“I’m Brennen’s roommate, {y/n},” you answered, standing up.

“How come we haven’t met you?” Sam asked.

“Because I’m usually out of the apartment when you guys are over. You can call Brennen and ask him if you want,” you told them, dusting off your pants. They looked at each other and Sam walked away with his phone in hand.

“This graffiti is amazing isn’t it,” Colby asked you, examining the wall you had poured over for hours.

“It’s nice to know my work is appreciated,” you smirked, looking over each and every piece. Colby looked down at you, mouth wide open.

“No way, you did this?” He asked, a smile making its way onto his face. You nodded, a prideful gleam in your eyes.

“{y/n/n}! Don’t you have to be packing right about now!” You heard Brennen exclaim. He was on FaceTime with Sam.

“Yeah, well my friends kinda ditched me,” you answered.

“We can give you a lift,” Colby offered.

“I’ll see you tomorrow! I’ll pick you up from LAX,” Brennen exclaimed to you from the phone.

“K, I’ll text you when I land,” you smiled at the phone.

“You’re leaving tomorrow?” Sam asked and you nodded.

“Have to be at the airport at four in the morning,” you grumbled as you all made your way back to Colby’s car. It turns out he was the owner of the Corolla you had seen earlier.

“So do we,” Colby said, opening the passenger seat up for you. You muttered a thank you as you got in. He shut the door and walked around the car to get into his seat. You went on your phone and made the pictures of your art into a collage to post on your Instagram.

“So, where exactly am I taking you?” Colby asked, getting onto the interstate.

“Her parents live in my neighborhood,” Sam answered. You looked at him, a brow raised. “Brennen told us where you’re from and he mentioned the neighborhood name,” he explained quickly, trying not to freak you out. You nodded slowly, and faced forward in your seat.

As the time passed, you simply watched the greenery fly by. Once you were in your neighborhood, you started giving Colby directions to your house. He pulled into the driveway and you got out of the car.

“Thank you so much for the ride, hopefully I’ll see you guys soon,” you said, shutting the door. You immediately walked inside where your family was waiting for you.

“{y/n}, honey! Where have you been?” Your mom asked, looking you over, making sure you weren’t hurt.

“Zach, Georgia, and I went to this abandoned warehouse and they left me, but thankfully friends of a friend were there and gave me a lift,” you answered, pushing past her and into your room. Your black suitcase decorated with spray paint sat in the corner, but you heaved it up onto your bed.

“When are you gonna visit again, Sissy?” Your younger brother, Alex, asked. Alex was seventeen, a senior in high school. He wanted to go to UCLA with you, but your parents convinced him to play baseball at some college in Florida. He flopped onto the bed, waiting for an answer.

“I don’t know, Bub. May not be for a while, because I’ve been saving for this trip since I moved,” you explained to him. He frowned as you threw clothes into your suitcase neatly.

“Can you just move back to Kansas?” He whined. You smiled sadly at him.

“I’m out there living my dream, Bub. I’m going for my Master’s degree ing graphic design. I’ll be home for Christmas,” you told him, reaching out to ruffle his hair.

“Hey, sis! Mom needs you in the kitchen!” Your older brother, Xavier, shouted, even though he was already in your room. Xavier was twenty-two and was playing football for Penn State. He was in a doctorate program for a psychology degree.

“Keep your voice down!” Alex shouted back.

“Both of you shut up!” You laughed, though you used a proper inside voice. You walked to the kitchen and your mom wasn’t there. You walked back to your room and saw your brothers and your mom packing your suitcase for you.

“Mom wanted me in the kitchen, huh?” You chuckled.

“I wanted you to be able to rest because you’re going to be a little jet lagged when you go back,” your mom said, rubbing your arm.

“It’s getting late, {y/m/n},” your dad said, yawning from your doorway.

“I’m coming, honey,” she said, kissing your hair. She left you with your brothers.

“Are you actually going to rest?” Alex asked and you laughed, setting your packed suitcase by your door.

“No, so how much chaos are we gonna cause?” You smirked.

Between us, waking up at two in the morning puts you in the worst mood. You usually spend your days sleeping past lunchtime and not going to bed well after the witching hour is over. Throughout high school your friends and your parents always told you that you should never take any classes earlier than two o’clock in the afternoon. Thankfully, all of your classes required were after two.

If you have to wake up this early, you need gallons of coffee to be able to be not a snippy lunatic. Your parents were happy to provide you three cups on the way to the airport.

“This is as far as we can go,” your mom said, eyes brimming with tears.

“If you start crying, I’m going to start crying,” you laughed, giving her a bone crushing hug. You clutched your backpack straps, having already checked your suitcase.

“Bye, sis,” Xavier said, hugging you tightly.

“Bye,” you said.

“Bye, Sissy,” Alex said, clutching your hoodie that was three times your size.

“Bye-bye, Bubs,” you responded, ruffling his hair. You bid your final farewells and went through security without a hitch. Quickly you found a Starbucks and got in line for a coffee.

“It’s too early for this crap,” you heard a familiar voice grumble. You turned your head slightly as to not be obvious and noticed Sam and Colby in line behind you.

“You got that right,” you responded. Both boys looked up at you and smiled immediately.

“What flight number are you?” Sam asked. You looked down at your ticket.

“Flight DL456, gate 13,” you answered, carefully putting it back in your hoodie pocket.

“Us too. I’ll go find our gate while you guys get coffee,” Sam said, quickly walking away from the two of you. Not that you were complaining though. Yeah you could see yourself as friends with Sam, you just thought that you and Colby would make better friends.

“He downed like ten Red Bulls on the way here,” Colby told you and you laughed.

“I can help the next guest!” The cashier exclaimed. You stepped up, not expecting Colby to be right behind you. When you took a step back to examine the menu, you ended up crashing into his chest.

“Are you okay?” He asked. He looked extremely concerned.

“Yeah, didn’t expect you to be right behind me,” you blushed. You told the girl, who was trying not to laugh, what you wanted. Colby added his coffee to the order and paid for it, ignoring your protests to let you pay half.

“Colby, I could have paid half,” you told him as you both ventured to find Sam.

“Yeah, well my dad taught me better than to not pay for a lady,” he responded.

“If we’re going to be friends you are going severely struggle with how stubborn I can be. Especially when it comes to paying for stuff,” you pouted.

“You weren’t very stubborn back there,” Colby muttered, sipping his coffee.

“Because you handed her the money before I had the chance to pull out my wallet,” you argued.

“Uh huh, yeah,” Colby responded, a boyish smile on his face as you both saw the back of Sam’s head.

“Hey, first class is boarding,” Sam told the both of you.

“Great. We were right on time,” you chuckled. You followed the boys onto the plane. You found your seat and sat down, immediately getting comfortable with your pillow. You faced the window, noticing someone else sit down.

“Wait, I thought we were sitting together,” Sam grumbled. You looked over, Colby sitting next to you.

“We can trade seats if you want,” you offered politely. Colby turned towards Sam so you couldn’t see him. Sam looked awkward.

“It’s okay, {y/n},” he smiled, walking towards another part of the plane. Colby turned to you but you were the first to speak.

“If you think we are going to be spending this flight talking to each other, you are absolutely out of your fricken’ mind. If you try to talk to me, I might bite your head off,” you growled, shocking Colby.

“Brennen was right, you are mean when you’re tired,” he laughed. You flicked him off, getting comfortable once again.

Stepping onto actual land once again was something you are always eager to do when you’re stuck on a plane for no matter how long. Colby was the one who woke you up, making sure you had everything. You were extremely sluggish, caused by your lack of sleep and caffeine.

“Why’re you so tired?” Sam asked you, a laugh escaping his lips.

“Last night me and my brothers spent the whole night shifting furniture five inches to the left. Then we switched everything in the cabinets over one to confuse our parents,” you explained softly.

“That’s the nicest she’s been all morning,” Colby told Sam, causing you to slap his chest.

“{y/n/n}!” You heard three people scream. The three of you turned your heads. You saw Brennen, remembering Colby had said something about texting him that you guys had landed. The other two were your roommates from freshman year of college, Genna and Felicity.

“Guys!” You exclaimed. You gave them all a hug, telling each of them how much they were missed. Colby and Sam caught up with Brennen while you did the same with the girls.

“There’s your suitcase!” Felicity beamed. You grabbed it and returned to their sides.

“So, who’re the cuties?” Genna asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

“Sam and Colby. Sam has a girlfriend and Colby doesn’t,” you answered quickly and quietly.

“Dang, the single one isn’t my type,” Genna huffed.

“Yeah, but he’s {y/n}’s type,” Felicity smirked, causing you to go red.

“What made {y/n} go all tomato?” Brennen laughed.

“Nothing,” the three of you blurted. The boys looked at you suspiciously, but it went ignored by you.

“Girls, what do you guys say about a welcome home party for these three Kansasians?” Brennen asked, tossing an arm around you and Genna. You figured it was a rhetorical question and the party had already been planned.

“On it,” Genna smirked, playing along.

“We’re gonna steal {y/n} for the rest of the day if that’s the case,” Felicity smiled, looking at Brennen.

“I have to go back to our place to unpack and shower. I really need a shower,” you interjected.

“Fine, we’ll just make sure you are on house arrest. The party is at our house. Angie has no problem with it and Jordyn is the party girl of the house,” Genna rambled as you all walked outside.

“Jake is here to pick us up, so text us the address later,” Colby said, him and Sam bidding a farewell.

“We’ll meet you at our place,” you told Genna and Felicity, knowing the drove together. They nodded as you followed Brennen to his car.

“That graffiti you did was crazy awesome,” Brennen told you, throwing your suitcase in the trunk.

“Thanks,” you smiled, sitting in the passenger’s seat. You weren’t sure how long the drive was, because you fell asleep and woke up to Brennen blowing an air horn really close to your face.

“Gotchu!” Brennen laughed.

“What the hell?” You yelled. He was just laughing, but you got your bags and walked inside. You had to wait for Brennen, remembering you had left your keys in your nightstand before you left.

“Why are you waiting?” Brennen asked. He looked confused, but didn’t want to push to many of your buttons.

“I left my keys here,” you grumbled. He quickly unlocked the door and you pushed the door open, immediately flopping onto the couch,

“No, no, no. Nope. Alright, upsy daisy,” Brennen said, realizing you wanted to take a fat nap. He had you sitting up by the end of his statement. After five minutes, he handed you a cup of coffee and Genna and Felicity made their way inside.

“Time to get ready!” Felicity cheered.

“But the party doesn’t start until nine,” Brennen exclaimed from the kitchen.

“We take a long time to get her ready,” Genna laughed.

“Yeah, she’s the most impatient person I’ve ever met,” Felicity laughed. You just groaned, curled up on the couch. Your hands still clutching the coffee.

“C’mon, we’re going to your room,” Genna said, lifting the mug out of your hands. You whined, but did as she said. Once the door had been shut, you were handed back the mug.

“You just be tired over there while we pick out your outfit,” Felicity smiled, waving towards your bed. You sat down in the middle with your legs folded. You sipped the coffee every so often, slowly waking up.

“This will help wake her up,” Brennen exclaimed, setting a Red Bull on your desk. He could do so without looking into the room because your desk was directly to the right of the frame.

“Thanks,” you grumbled. You were handed the can and alternated what you took sips from.

Felicity and Genna were bickering about what you should wear. In the process they were making a mess of your closet and the chair that sat next to it. Once you were done with both of your beverages you seemed like your normal self.

“Here’s the plan. You are going to wear your dad’s old Nirvana t-shirt, from the concert he went to and your black ripped jeans. The layer will be a black cardigan. You are going to put on your Doc Martens and then we have full artistic responsibility for your hair and makeup,” Genna said, turning to you. All you did was shrug lazily as both girls whirled around the room like tornadoes. You internally laughed at the comparison, since you did grow up in tornado alley.

“Okay, go take a quick shower and then come back,” Felicity demanded and you did as she said.

After you returned to your room, the two turned around so you could get dressed. Once you were, Genna had you sitting on your stool so she could do your hair. Every so often you asked her what she was doing, wearing her patience thin.

“I’m done! Stop asking me stupid questions and just look in the mirror,” Genna exclaimed loudly. You just laughed at her reaction and turned. Genna has straightened your hair and then did loose curls.

“Lookin’ hot,” Felicity joked. You returned to the stool as Felicity preceded to do your makeup. It wasn’t anything heavy or outlandish. Just a casual look because everyone at this party are people you’ve met before.

“Are you guys done yet? It’s been hours,” You heard Brennen yell from somewhere else in the place.

“We’re working on jewelry right now!” Genna yelled back. By the time the girls were done playing dress up, you had several rings on both hands. Two necklaces were fastened around your neck, one shorter than the other. Both were charms that said ‘Sister’, one was in Alex’s handwriting. The other in Xavier’s. Your earrings were small hoops.

“Cute,” Felicity gushed.

“Now put on your shoes,” Genna told you. You did so and then looked in the mirror. It wasn’t something you would wear in your day to day life, but each article separately you would. You smiled, feeling a little more confident than usual.

“Finally, she’s not going to be holed up in her room! {y/n} {y/l/n} is actually going to a party!” Brennen hollered when you walked out of your bedroom.

“I like to party. And by party, I mean take naps,” you corrected him.

“You nap at like four in the afternoon,” Brennen laughed at you.

“Irrelevant,” you laughed.

“We’re going to go help Angie set up, but we’ll see you later,” Genna said to you.

“Okay, bye,” you nodded, waving as Felicity followed her out.

“I’m meeting Colby at Tender Greens, wanna come?” Brennen asked you. Usually, you would never get an invite because you had expressed to Brennen you were fine with your current friend group and you didn’t want your solar system to collide into Brennen’s. Though, it has once you fell on the floor in the abandoned warehouse.

“No thanks. I have to unpack and do my laundry,” you answered.

Brennen had returned a few hours later to you having just finished all of your laundry. He was whistling loudly as he made a cup of coffee for himself. You sat on the couch, reading your favorite book.

“Haven’t you read that book already?” Brennen asked curiously, sitting next to you.

“Yeah, but I’m going to reread it every so often,” you answered.

When you first told your parents you were going to move in with a guy you had met through your roommates in freshman year, they were extremely uncomfortable with the idea. Brennen and you were pretty tight, and he would call or Skype your parents almost everyday, maybe even twice a day. All that just to make sure their worries were eased. Thankfully they were and they never complained. Your mom adored Brennen, your dad simply tolerated him.

“We had an interesting conversation,” Brennen told you, flicking through tv channels.

“What was it about?” You asked curiously. You were still reading, but kept an ear open.

“You,” he answered. You lifted your head to look at him and you rose an eyebrow.

“Yeah? What about me?” You questioned, hoping it wasn’t embarrassing.

“I didn’t say much. It was mainly him saying how cute you are, how pretty you are, a lot of ‘how come you never introduced us before’, a few ‘she’s totally may type. Oh and here’s the best one ‘I think I may have found someone who won’t break my heart,” Brennen said, imitating Colby when he quoted his friends words.

“You’re telling me this because?” You laughed.

“I know you like him too. He’s gonna be at the party tonight and I may or may not have influenced what Genna and Felicity chose your you to wear,” Brennen laughed. You turned beet red as he continued to tease you.

As nine o’clock grew closer, you grew more anxious by the second. Picking at your fingernails, playing with a loose thread on your cardigan, tugging at the hem of your shirt. That was how you tried to pry your mind away from the cute blue-haired boy. Throughout high school, you didn’t really pay attention to boys, choosing to focus closely on your studies to be able to get scholarships for UCLA, which you ended up doing. When you told your mom you were awarded a full ride, she just about cried.

“We’re here!” Brennen cheered, pulling up to the already crowded house. When you stepped out, the bass of the music shook your body. You already agreed to be the designated driver, letting Brennen be able to enjoy himself. You had lost him as soon as you step foot in the door, though you did catch sight of familiar blue hair.

[i-can-get-extra-with-my-ships]

A Slice Of My Love. Chapter 8. The One Where I Get Sent Downstairs And Em Gives You One Of The Stupidest Things She's Come Up With.

Hello, my children! If you saw the teaser then you know where this is going. I think writing about Virgil losing his sanity is making me lose mine. Anywho, it’s serious talk time.

Parings: Vilonso/Deathbread. (Oh god that felt weird to write. I’m normally the person who looks at people’s ocs, not the person who makes ocs.)

Tw: Heathers and Be More Chill references, cursing, a slight NSFW mention (if you’ve listened to the song More Than Survive you know what I’m getting at), bomb mention, the death/murder of the fourth wall, and Virgil being insane. (The norm for this book)

Ok here’s a new thing: I’m going to link the four songs that are mentioned/sang/used: 

I Am Damaged (from Heathers tw: explosions, suicide, and suicide mention): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlVxhg-HVCk 

Candy Store (from Heathers): 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQOoTX1Nxx8

More Than Survive (from Be More Chill): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuOrwWdJFEs

Voices In My Head (from Be More Chill): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvpaivDBwQs

(Both Be More Chill songs the original cast recording because I listened to like 6 lines of More Than Survive from the Broadway one and hated it. (Will Connolly is SOOO much better for Jeremy) Look at this!! I’ve only been into this show for two days (on the day of publishing this chapter) and I have incredibly strong opinions already!!! And Heathers is the world premiere cast recording because you can hate me later, I hate the West End version of Heathers. They used the HIGH SCHOOL replacement for Blue!! I can tangent more about how much I hate the West End version of Heathers and the Broadway version of BMC later if you so wish.)

Virgil’s POV

----

“Virgil, could you please go downstairs?” Patton asked me.

Well, good luck to princey. I think we just got Ramen murdered. Oops, I did it again. I played with your- Why are you like this? Why are either of you like this?

I let go of Roman’s hand and begrudgingly went downstairs. I want to know what they were saying. Actually, I think I can find out. 

Em, what are they talking about?

(Now is not the time for you to find out.)

You’re writing this chapter before you write what they’re saying, aren’t you?

(Umm… Maybe!! But I have notes!!!)

Ahh yes, the very “scientific notes” you have that are written in cursive, with the all caps too because you're just extra like that.

“FaLsEhOoD!!!!!!!!!”

I jumped at Logan’s screech. Jesus!! What was that for?

(Dunno, it was funny.)

You know what will be funny? Seeing how you work that into the next chapter.

(Virgil, Virgil, Virgil, I already know how I’m gonna add that to the story. I’m decently smart when I feel like it.)

I can just hear the angry readers. Like I said in chapter 2, there is no fourth wall for this cautionary tale. For my chapters at least. OH!! That’s a funny idea.

(To the tune of I am Damaged)

It is damaged. 

Far to damaged. 

The readers think it’s not beyond repair.

I’ll stick around here.

I won’t make things better.

Cause Em’s beat us fair and square.

Step away from the wall now.

Little further.

I know what this thing will do.

Hope you miss it.

Please don’t kiss it.

I don’t need to know that you worship it.

It won’t trade its life for yours.

(Virgil what are you doing?)

And once it disappears,

(I’m in love with the reference but I’m confused.)

There’ll be a mess down here.

(Why do you have a bomb?)

Say bye to the wall.

Say bye to the wall.

Say bye to the wall.

Say bye to the wall.

(*Snaps fingers* There’s no more wall.)

What the? Why did you take my bomb?

(This is why Roman is JD.)

It would’ve been fine.

(You were planning to throw a bomb at the fourth wall. How would that have ended well?)

Magic!

(Ok. Yeah. We’re done. I’m gonna go now. I’ll still be the present force giving you existence. But I’m done with you. Too much lack of basic intelligence here.)

Well, at least I can have a bomb again.

(Oh yeah! And no more bombs.)

Whatever. 

I was too busy talking with Em to notice Alonso on the counter again. It startled me. But now I had the perfect opportunity to talk to him without getting interrupted.

“How long have you been sitting there?”

He’d been staring at me since I came downstairs I think. He got off the counter and walked over to me. “Ehh. Not too long.”

You know what? He’s like really sketchy. We’re gonna question him to the ends of this Earth.

“How did you get here?”

“I just appeared.”

That’s a constructive answer. “No like the first time. I could’ve sworn that it was only me and Pat in the kitchen.”

“Yeah I kinda just appeared then too. Also, sweety stop slouching and your bangs!! Who the hell gave you permission to walk around with your hair like that?”

That’s who he reminded me of. The critic character from Thomas’ last video. I told Roman that the character was too similar to Remy, as the fans have dubbed the sleep character from Thomas’ shorts. Did he listen? No.

The fans didn’t care though. The love the critic. If I’m not mistaken this one discord server has dubbed him “Critic Anton Dice”. (Shout out to all my wonderful friends in the The Kinds Of Minds You’d Only Find In Hell discord server! Y’all are amazing!!!)

Still something else though. I can’t quite place my finger on it and it’s pissing me off.

That something else is why you think he’s hot. Not true. It is true. Remy pisses us off, the critic guy is an ass. It’s that something else. Both of you need to shut up or I’m yeeting myself out a goddamn window!!

That shut them both up.

“Yeah, I don’t give a fuck about my hair or posture. And not gonna lie, your ‘appearing’ is kinda creepy.”

He rolled his eyes at me and fixed my bangs. “Ugh! Fine if you won’t fix them yourself I’ll do it.”

He fussed over my hair for quite some time. Once he finished, he finally brought up the ‘just appearing thing’.

“Don’t you just appear?”

I took mild offense to that. See? We don’t think he’s hot. He’s just an ass. The something else is hot. Can you both just stop? The option to yeet me out a window is still on the table. Just saying.

Anyways. I took mild offense to that. “See that’s the thing.” You have no clue how badly I wanted to say ‘with you plastics’. Not the time tho. “I appear in a not creepy way. You just pop up on the counter and don’t make a sound. It’s kinda terrifying.”

He scoffed at me. “Does it look like I care?” I rolled my eyes. “Anyways, do you guys have any coffee?” He asked.

There we go there is the Remy. You’re not wrong. Ya know, it’s kinda nice to have the voices in your head get along for once. SHUT UP!! BESIDES, HE’S STARING!!! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO GET HIM COFFEE!!! GODDAMN!!! CALM THE FUCK DOWN!!! BOTH OF YOU!!!

I played of the incredibly pissed voices in my head like they were nothing and answered Alonso’s question. “Uhh, yeah we have coffee, but it’s like noon now.”

“Do I look like I care? This bitch needs his Starbucks.”

“We have coffee, not Starbucks.”

“Whatever, I just need caffeine.”

Huh. This guy really is Remy, isn’t he? Yeah, he is. I need coffee too so it’s a win-win.

I walked to the kitchen and started making coffee. While the coffee machine was doing coffee machine things, I was sitting on the counter. Alonso had started looking through the cabinets.

I cocked my head to the side messing up my recently “fixed” bangs.

“What are you doing?”

“Looking for sugar. You got any?”

“Yeah. It’s in that cabinet.” I pointed out the one that should have the sugar. I have no clue if it does. He went to the cabinet that I had told him that the sugar should be in and started combing through it.

I stared at the coffee machine, waiting for it to finish. I had subconsciously started to drum my hands on the counter-top. “C-c-c-come on!! C-c-c-come on!! Go! Go! C-c-c-come on!! C-c-c-come on!! Go! Go!”

Ok. You have no right to judge me. I fricken love Be More Chill. I continued with the song. Slowly getting louder. “I’m waiting for my porno to load. My brain is gonna fricken explode.”

The coffee finished. I grabbed two mugs, still singing. Like I said, I fricken love Be More Chill. I’m not gonna sit there and only sing 4 lines of More Than Survive. Also, the next part of the song fits. 

“And now, of course, it’s time to hit the road.” I poured some coffee into the mugs “Which means I’ll be uncomfortable all day, but that really isn’t such a change. If I'm not feeling weird or super strange, my life would be in utter disarray. 'Cause freaking out is my okay.” 

If Jeremy Heere isn’t me than I have no clue what is. “Good morning time to start the day.”

“But it’s noon.”

I jumped at the voice. I may or may not have forgotten that Alsonso was still there. I attempted to recover from the very obvious fact that I’d forgotten about his existence.

“It’s called Be More Chill. Have you ever heard of it?”

He had found the sugar and it was sitting on the table. I brought over the two coffee mugs.

He scoffed. “Of course I’ve heard of Be More Chill!! What rock do you assume I’m living under??”

Extra bitch. You’re not wrong though.

Me, being the idiot I am, actually, I’m not an idiot. This rather creepy man is. You don’t just interrupt someone jamming out to a Be More Chill song like that. 

“So why did you interrupt me?”

He gave me this look of judgment. But judgment and something I couldn’t read. 

What is it with you and not being able to read things today? First the something else and now this?

Yet another way I relate to Jeremy Heere. I could feel myself zoning out again.

“And there are voices in my head. So many voices in my head. And they can yell and hurt like hell, but I know that I'll be fine. I still have voices in my head. Yeah, there are voices in my head. Of the voices in my head, the loudest one is mine!” I had started singing again. “Loudest one is mine! Loudest one is mine!”

I was snapped out of my thoughts by Roman walking downstairs and screaming “C-C-C-COME ON!! C-C-C-COME ON!! LET’S GO!!!”

One thing that y’all need to know about being best fucken friends with Roman: He will randomly start screeching lyrics from random musical theater/Disney songs at random times.

In that moment, I was singing Voices In My Head. This added the idea/impulse (you never know with Roman) to his brain to either join in at some random part or jump in once I had stopped, even if that meant restarting the song. We don’t care.

Yes, we. 

Roman doesn’t give a fuck. 

I don’t have any fucks to give.

Anywho, I joined him. “C-C-C-COME ON!! C-C-C-COME ON!! LET’S GO!!!”

I heard Logan groan behind him. “OH MY GOD!! BOTH OF YOU NEED TO SHUT UP!!!!”

I locked eyes with Roman to make sure that we were in sync for the plan that was forming in our heads.

I stood up. Roman steamed “SHUT UP HEATHER!!!!” I very over dramatically fell on the floor. Roman then began to sing the Candy Store riff. I quickly stood up and sang “TIME FOR YOU TO PROVE YOU’RE NOT A LAME ASS ANYMORE!!!” 

We both came in for the end. “AND STEP INTO MY CANDY STORE!!! IT’S MY CANDY STORE, IT’S MY CANDY!!!! IT’S MY CANDY STORE, IT’S MY CANDY!!!! IT’S MY CANDY STORE, IT’S MY CANDY SOOOORE!!!!!!”

We looked at Patton and Lo-, well, he had gone upstairs again. So we looked at Pat. He looked like he was about to flip his lid. 

I mean, Pat had never been one for Heathers, or BMC, because of the death, murder, sex, cursing, drinking, and drugs/smoking in the shows. It’s sad though!!! All of the good shows are the ones that aren’t 100% kid-friendly!!

I looked back at Roman. We began to laugh hysterically.

I realized that Alonso wasn’t there anymore. Like anywhere. 

But I didn’t care. 

Right now wasn’t about Alonso. 

Right now was about me being a theater geek with my best friend.

----

Y’all can judge me later for all of the BMC and Heathers references!!! Heathers is Virgil’s favorite and then BMC. Fight me.

I would say that this chapter is the longest, but it’s only because of my theater tangent (which is a half a page long on google docs) in the first A/N. (The chapter is 5 pages on Google Docs)

Oof. Umm. I don’t like this chapter very much. Well, not as much as the others. I like it more than other chapters, but I still don’t like it. But not enough dislike to rewrite it.

Also, I failed my own goal. I WANTED to make this chapter post 666 on @i-can-get-extra-with-my-ships, but it’s post 695. *Sad author/theater geek/prinxietea trash goblin noises* 

But I guess that this is my birthday present to myself? I’m posting this on chapter on September 22. My birthday is September 23. Ehh. Good enough.

----

Ok, so before this gets really confusing:

This is the main voice inside Virgil’s head.

This is the other voice in Virgil’s head.

This is the two voices together.

(This is me, the author, Em, talking to Virgil, adding a random A/N in the middle of the chapter, or just establishing something like a stage direction almost. Ex. (To the tune of I Am Damaged) in this chapter. The difference between this one and the one above it is the parentheses.)

----

The now almost 13-year-old “author” (that isn't really an author),

                            Em

(P.s with the sign-off and this part, the chapter is now just barely over 5 pages long on google docs. I need to cool it with the A/Ns. No one cares/reads the A/N. Why do I tell you guys this random crap?)

----

Taglist (I need to be informed if you’d like to get added, preferably through DMs or the inbox so I can make sure you get added): @winterswishing-reblogs @just-some-gt-trash @thetomorrowshow @iixclementine @an-existing-leah @elatedgiff

[patton-croc-agenda]

Claws and Effect Ch.1

A/N: I’ve been planning this fic for a while now, so I’m super excited to share it aHH! Updates might be slow until Coral and Crowns is finished, but I finished this about a week ago and have lost all patience. This chapter is pretty slow, but things will pick up real soon, promise!

Next: Chapter 2

Summary: Becoming the superhero Morality wasn’t exactly Patton’s first choice of career, but he liked to think he’d been handling it well enough- balancing his alter ego and regular day job at his cousin’s cafe. That is, until a familiar face walks into Sanders Delights, and a mysterious new villain appears soon after.

Pairings: Romantic logicality, Platonic Sleepality

Words:  3,703

Warnings: None

Cross his heart and seal it with a pinkie promise, Patton was not falling asleep on the job. No sir, not he! He was just...trying to very slowly blink the dryness out of them.

“Patton?” Patton’s head snapped up and he turned to face Thomas, who was wiping one of the counters with a quirked brow.

“Stay up too late watching Parks and Rec again?” Thomas laughed. Patton laughed along with him, refilling the napkin dispenser.

“You know me, Thomas,” Patton said brightly, feeling the amusement rolling off Thomas in steady, soft waves. Patton hated lying, but he technically didn’t. Lie, that is. Thomas did know him. He just happened to be wrong about Patton’s nightly pastimes. His ribs still ached dully from where an unruly gang member had decided to kick him.

“Sure do, Pat,” Thomas’s gaze flicked up at the sound of the bell above the door jinggling merrily. “Though, I think someone knows you even better.” He gestured towards the man who had just walked in, decked in a leather jacket, messenger bag, and dark sunglasses- an iced coffee dangling losely from one hand.

“REM!” Patton shouted, suddenly very awake. He launched himself over the counter- a shock to Thomas apparently- and threw himself in his arms. Remy chuckled warmly, contentedness, affection, and love bubbling around Patton.

“What’re you doin here, kiddo?” Patton asked, walking over to let himself back behind the counter, inviting Remy along as well. “I doubt it’s more coffee, as you said the aesthetic of Starbucks outranks even the actually good tasting stuff we make at Sanders Delights.”

“Mmmm, yeah, you’re right as always Patty,” Remy took a sip of the coffee he did have, placing it on the counter, “I came for two reasons. The first: I need a job.” Patton blinked, feeling Thomas’s confusion as well.

“Why? What happened with your last job I thought you loved it,” Patton said, worry churning in his gut. Remy offered him a soft chuckle, ruffling his carmel curls.

“I did, kinda. I got fired for ahem,” Remy made air quotes, “‘misusing and tampering with dangerous equipment.’” He scoffed, crossing his arms, “Like, if you didn’t want me using the equipment, then don’t make it so easily accessible. So, yeah, you got a job opening or two?” he turned to Thomas who thought.

“Well, we are always open to hiring family. Wait...why two?” Remy shrugged nonchalantly.

“My buddy Helen quit, a little before I got fired actually. She’s been lookin’ for a job. She’d have most of the same qualifications as me, y’know?” Thomas bit his lip, thinking.

“Well a couple kids won’t be working here much longer since they’re graduating so I suppose...”

“Awesome, thanks TomTom, love ya! I’m stealing my lil bro now though, bye-bye,” Remy, grabbed Patton by the arm and started to drag him away.

“Wh- Remy, I have opening shift starting in ten minutes. You can’t just take the only other person working!” Thomas protested. Patton pulled his arm away with a laugh.

“Yeah, sorry Rem. I’m actually currently employed.”

“Wow, okay, first, I’m wounded. Second: can I at least take you into the back? I need to show you something, like right now. Or I will die. And then you’d lose me. Which would suck, Patton.” Patton giggled, feeling the light teasing bounce across his skin.

“That sounds fine, right Thomathy?” Patton turned to Thomas. He sighed, equally dramatic, and leaned against the wall.

“I suppose I can live without my best barista/cashier for five minutes,” he said, throwing a wink at the two. Patton laughed and Remy saluted, dragging Patton into the back room. It was small and cramped- clearly not meant for being more than a storage room. Despite this fact, a rickety old card table and a couple beanbags were tossed on the floor for employees who wanted a quick break between rushes. Remy threw himself down into one of the beanbags and rifled through his bag.

“So, what is so so important you had to show me right now?” Patton asked, plopping down in the beanbag across from his brother. Remy grinned sharply, excitement and mischief sparking and poking at Patton as Remy pulled out what appeared to be a strip of fabric.

“Tada! It’s a new mask,” Remy tossed it to Patton, who caught it with one hand.

“What’s wrong with my old mask?” Patton asked, looking for eyeholes and finding none. Remy scoffed, taking another sip of his coffee.

“Patty Patt, you got real noticeable eyes. We’re lucky no one has caught a closeup view of you on camera yet. Plus, with this one you can’t skimp out on putting in contacts, and I think that’ll help with your glasses budget” Patton blushed, studying the mask again.

“So...how am I supposed to see out of this?” Patton asked. Smugness danced across his skin as Remy leaned forward, removing Patton’s glasses and tying the mask around his face like a blindfold. Somehow, Patton could still see through (well, see as well as he could without glasses or contacts), with only a slightly dark tint to everything blocking his vision.

“Woah, how did you manage this?” Patton asked, flexing his fingers. Even though the fabric was light, the clarity of what he was seeing was still quite impressive. Remy shrugged, but that smugness was still there.

“Lotsa coffee and a couple late nights. You’re welcome,” Remy pulled a notepad out of his bag and made a few checks, “Only 36 left.”

“Oh no, how will I live when you run out of owed favors,” Patton deadpanned, taking the mask off and shoving it in his apron pocket  while he slid his glasses back on. The prodding teasing was back as Remy slung an arm across Patton’s shoulders.

“You won’t. I’m going to kill you,” Remy pinched Patton in the side, causing him to squeal, “zap zap you’ve been tased.”

“No tasing allowed! Sanders Delights is a safe zone,” Remy playfully smacked his forehead.

“Ah, how could I forget?”

“That’s one extra favor- you’re back to 37.”

“What? Boo!” Remy shoved Patton’s shoulder as they exited the back room. Patton froze, the air around him crackling. His skin began to crawl and itch and prickle and tingle and burn and freeze. He looked up slowly to see the cafe already had a large amount of patrons present.

“There you are!” Thomas said, making a latte, “we got really busy the second you left and- Patton are you alright?” Patton shook his head, attempting to clear the cobweb feeling of emotions clinging at him.

“Y-yeah. Just gimmie a sec,” Patton had to mentally shove away the worry gnawing at him coming from Remy’s direction as he breathed in through his nose. He breathed out slowly, focusing on himself- his ears to be specific. When switching to his enhanced hearing, it always felt like his ears popped. The sound seemed to go from muffled to unbearably loud. The sudden cacophony was almost as bad as the sticking, itching, burning, freezing feeling of emotions all around, but as Patton found a target of focus, the difference was immeasurable.

“Journalism just ain’t working huh?” he let his focus be on a couple of girls on the opposite end of the cafe, the other sounds muffling in comparison.

“Ugh, it’s just so dishonest. I swear if I have to do one more phony story I’m gonna lose it,” the woman stabbed her straw into her drink. Patton closed his eyes and let his hearing slowly trickle back into empathy, trading sounds for emotions. The feeling was much less intense now that he was expecting it. The whole ordeal felt to him like it took an obnoxiously long amount of time, but considering everyone just went along with it, he assumed it was in actuality much closer to thirty seconds.

“Okay, sorry about that!” Patton trotted over to Thomas, who simply shrugged, and kept making his order. He and Patton fell into a steady rhythm for a few minutes before Thomas spoke up again.

“Wanna train your brother? Since we’re hiring him and all that,” Thomas scribbled a name on the cup in his hands while Patton bagged a doughnut- subtly trying and failing to lick the glaze off his fingers without being caught.

“Sure!” he said, turning to Remy and bumping shoulders with him. Remy snickered and menacingly reached his fingers out to brush Patton’s sides. Patton squirmed and stifled his giggles with a half-hearted glare before diving in.

Another few minutes, and the rush had died down notably. Remy seemed to quite easily get the hang of making coffee and bagging pastries, so Patton let him genuinely help out a little with Thomas’s okay. It wasn’t the most thrilling job, but Patton figured if Remy wanted excitement he should’ve cared more about keeping his previous job.

Patton, lost in his thoughts to help fight off the monotony of his job, startled at the bell above the door announcing a new arrival. The cup he’d been holding jumped from his grasp and tumbled onto the floor, rolling away from him. If Patton were the type to swear, he would’ve just then as he got down on his hands and knees to chase after the darned thing.

He was so focused, he hardly heard the customer’s smooth, monotone voice as he ordered from Thomas. Patton paused a second, swearing it was a voice he’d heard before. He shrugged it off, however, because it wasn’t uncommon for people to come in multiple times, even if they weren’t regulars. Patton finally succeeded in retrieving the cup, making a victorious sound in the back of his throat.

“And your name?” Thomas asked.

“Logan,” the man said. Patton jolted up suddenly, slamming his head on the counter and letting out a strangled hiss. He looked up, rubbing the back of his head, and saw Remy pull his shades down a hair.

“Hooooooly sh-” Patton pinched Remy’s leg, making him yelp. “I was gonna say holy, uh, sharks. Yup,” Remy said, popping the p before he took his shades off the rest of the way, green eyes like fire, “Logan Lehrer?”

“That would be correct. Do I know you?” Patton definitely recognized Logan now, as he could sense the strange, muffled buzzing against his skin. Patton never could figure out how his emotions were so dulled down to the point he could hardly pick them up, a factor that had drawn him to the other time and again during high school. He couldn’t dwell on his newfound wonder, however, because Remy was looking down at Patton, a wolfish grin on his face as he slid his sunglasses back up his nose. Patton shook his head wildly.

“Ohhh my God, gurl, you don’t remember?” Patton knew Remy was probably fluttering his lashes as mischief began poking at Patton once more, “I was the annoying one who asked you way too many personal questions that one time you had a project with my brother!” This was the first time Patton was hearing about this and he glared up at his brother from where he was still crouched, vowing revenge and a very lengthy lecture on privacy.

“Oh. Remy,” Patton felt clear annoyance break through the dull buzz, scratching down his arms. He winced, but was glad it wasn’t as extreme as it was when he felt it from other people, “Of course you work here.”

“Nah, I don’t quite yet,” Remy started making Logan’s order, dodging around Patton as he did so, “this is free labor, baby.”

“Right,” Remy set the drink down and put his elbows on the counter, raising his eyebrows. “Speaking of your brother, though, how is Patton?” Patton’s legs were getting tired from being crouched for so long, and Thomas was giving him questioning glances from where he was standing.

“Well,” Remy’s hand landed at the base of Patton’s neck, bunching the fabric of his shirt in a fist, “why not ask him yourself?” Remy yanked up, and for the five seconds before Patton was still blissfully hidden he managed a tiny internal mantra of please don’t still be hot, please don’t still be hot, please don’t still be hot.

Gosh. Darnit.

Logan blinked his warm, golden brown eyes in shock that was like sudden static against Patton’s skin as he adjusted his glasses.The shock melted back, but Patton could hardly care as his internal functions were all screaming abort abort, still hot! Still hot!

“Patton? What were you doing under the counter?” Logan asked. Patton coughed, holding out the styrofoam cup he had been chasing after when Logan first entered.

“Dropped this!”  Good start, good start, Now, play it cool, Sanders, “Soooo. We have the same glasses?” Nailed it.

Logan gave another surprised blink before narrowing his eyes at Patton.

“You would be correct. Odd, did you have those frames back in high school?”

“Uhhhh,” Patton looked to his brother for assistance, who shook his head slightly, “No?” Patton had never hated not being able to feel Logan’s emotions clearly more than he did in that moment, as Logan arched one of his stupid, perfect eyebrows and leaned against the counter.

“You sound unsure. Do you honestly not recall if you’ve bought new frames since then?” Logan asked. Patton opened his mouth then paused. Because he suddenly remembered-

“This is my fifth pair in the last month. I lose track.”

“What? Patton, how do you break five pairs of glasses in a month?”

Don’t say beating up bad guys, don’t say beating up bad guys, don’t say-

“I am just. So, clumsy,” Patton put his palms flat against the counter, staring at it in mild horror. Remy sympathetically patted his back and slurped the last of his coffee loudly.

Patton was saved from further embarrassment when the bell rang again and Remy let out a loud gasp, soft, featheriness coming from him as he darted around Patton and threw himself into the arms of the man who just walked in. Said man looked extremely done despite having only just arrived as he curled his arms around Remy, who planted a loud, obnoxious kiss on his cheek.

“Hey Ethey-pooh,” it was slightly mocking, but fond. The man rolled his eyes.

“I despise you.”

“Love you too! Come to see me at work? You’re the bestest,” Remy climbed out of his boyfriend’s arms, and Patton watched him warily. Ethan Serpent was a notorious liar, and known to occasionally swipe small objects. Patton didn’t really like him (which was saying something- he liked everyone), but he made Remy happy, so he kept his complaints to a minimum.

Ethan lounged against the counter, ignoring everyone as Patton focused his gaze back on Logan. He was looking above Patton’s head, brows furrowed. Patton turned to see Logan was watching the television they kept above the counter for people to watch if they wanted. The audio was off, but subtitles were on. A reporter (Patton thought it might be one of the women he saw earlier, actually) was shown, her lips moving slightly off from the words at the bottom of the screen.

“In recent news, the hero dubbed Morality has recently aided in taking down the gang the…” the woman squinted “babbling baboons? Police and Scientists still marvel at the strength, speed, and abilities of flight this superhero displays.”

“Fascinating,” Logan breathed, another precious emotion breaking through the cloud and washing across Patton. Wonder, pure and clean. Patton was probably sweating, so he ducked his head and scrubbed a little more aggressively than necessary at the counter.

“Oh. Him. That’s no big deal,” Patton let out a hysterical little laugh, “guy showed up a few months ago and beat up some criminal who was trying to rob a couple. It just so happened the boyfriend of the lady he assaulted was a vlogger or something so, uh. Yeah. I’m surprised you haven’t heard of him yet.”

“Oh, I moved out of state for college. I only came back because a job offer was given to me about a month or so ago, and the local news has not exactly been my top priority.”

“Nor social interaction, if you haven’t heard any gossip about Mr. Morality,” Remy called from where he was running his hands across the chest of Ethan’s yellow sweater.

“Stop having eye sex in my cafe,” Thomas said, carrying a sack of sugar out from the back. Remy pouted, folding his arms and scrunching his nose.

“So. A real life superhero, huh? I wonder how his powers came to be. Also, where did he get the costume? And why is it cat themed- that seems rather silly.”

“Hey! That costume is awesome, excuse you,” Remy said, leaning against Ethan, who looped an arm across his shoulders.

“You have excellent tastes,” Ethan informed Logan. Remy beamed.

“See? Ethan agrees with me,” Remy curled a hand around the back of his neck and tilted his head down to kiss him.

“You two are repulsive,” Logan deadpanned, turning back to Patton. Remy huffed.

“You won’t be saying that when you get a boyfriend, Logan,” Remy said. Logan ignored him.

“Well, I best be off then. It was a pleasure to see you again, Patton. Can not say the same for your brother.” Patton laughed, and, in a moment of impulsiveness Patton was quite well known for, he stopped Logan from leaving by reaching over the counter and hooking onto his arm.

“W-wait!” Logan turned, and Patton turned pick as he raised one of his stupid perfect eyebrows again. “I, uh, want my phone number?” Logan blinked, a softness growing around the edges of his emotional buzz.

“I would not be opposed to that.” Patton scribbled his number on Logan’s coffee cup, handing him a small bag with a doughnut in it.

“For luck, y’know?” Logan’s smile was soft.

“Thank you, Patton.”

~~~

Patton really, really needed to lay off the sweets. He grunted as he struggled to yank on one of his boots. One would think running around 6 out of 7 nights a week would help him lose weight, but apparently not.

He really hated how thick his calves were, especially now. He didn’t want to wear his crocs either, because he was pretty sure they would fall off if he needed to fly at all. Along with that, Remy had informed him he was probably one of the last people on earth who wore them because they were a, quote, “fashion disaster”. Plus, his pair had cute little jibbitz that looked like cookies, cats, dogs, and rainbows, so someone would probably find it suspicious if the renowned hero Morality had the same crocs as the culinary arts major who worked at the little cafe in the heart of the city.

Grunting, Patton finally managed to get the dumb thing on, only to realize he had yet to put on the other one. He sighed, wedging his foot into it after much trial and error. He stood up, walking in small circles to adjust, before heading over to the mirror in front of his door. He ran a hand through his curls, trying to tame them somewhat before he pulled up his hood. He couldn’t suppress a giggle as he fiddled with the ears on the top. Of all the costume designs to get stuck as his brand, Patton was glad it was the cat. He tied on his mask, looking at himself one last time. Remy was right, he looked way different when his eyes weren’t visible.

Taking a deep breath, he turned and walked to the window, slowly opening it and looking around. No one in sight. Good. Patton pulled himself up onto the window sill, nearly purring as the wind whipped around his face, making his cape flap around him. He leapt into the air, feeling his flight take effect as he floated up and landed lightly on top of one of the buildings.

Patton stared out across the city. There was something about being a hero that Patton loved, even when he wasn’t helping people in the moment. Just the rush of knowing what was to come. It made Patton feel just a little bit braver.

With a grin, Patton thundered across the roof and leapt into the air. His stomach dropped, and it felt like the world was going in slow motion even as his heart rate increased. Then, the moment was over as his feet made contact with the top of the next building. Call him an adrenaline junkie, but there were worse things to get high on.

He landed in a crouch after a couple more rooftops, taking a moment to catch his breath. Sweat dripped down his forehead, and he stood up straight to wipe it off. He looked up, seeing the tallest building in town a little ways ahead. Patton flew up towards it, landing on the top and gripping the lightning rod, hanging over the edge and scanning the town. This was his favorite place to perch and look for trouble, as it gave him a great overhead view. Patton did wish one of his powers was super vision, but he guessed his ears would have to do.

Patton let his super hearing take over, scanning across town. A group of teenagers here, a few drunk guys there (he’d keep an ear on them), but nothing terribly out of the ordinary. Patton sometimes wished there was more interesting stuff happening, but he would immediately scold himself and remind himself that boring was good. Boring meant no one was getting hurt.

Patton was just about to give up and start just doing his regular patrol, when there was an explosion from the outskirts of the city. He jolted, the sound rattled around in his skull, making his head throb painfully. He couldn’t even tell if it had really been loud, or if his super hearing just made it seem that way. Maybe both? Either way it was still more excitement then he’d seen in months.

Despite the guilt and worry gnawing at his heart, he couldn’t help the tiniest smile from curling on his lips.

“Alright then, let’s go.”

General Writing Taglist:  @angeliclogan @pattons-constellations@amuthefunperson@tatergator27@honeycoloredcorduroy@1esor2 @that-royal-ravenclaw@sardonicsanders@iridescentroyalty@sheeparecutest @pathos-logical @virge-of-a-breakdown@doodlesxkiwi @hungry-red-panda

[writing-in-the-impala]

Hey Darling: Part 6

Pairing: Rob Benedict x Reader Misha Collins x reader

Series Summary: You’re new to conventions but it’s okay because you meet some pretty amazing people, including Rob Benedict.

Warnings: Angst

Word Count: 1733

A/N: A short filler chapter but I’m posting it because I’ve had a lot of ideas and well I’m currently writing part 12 so yeah I’m far ahead so might as well get these parts out fast.

Part 5 | Hey Darling Masterlist

  You woke up on Sunday with a headache from the alcohol and crying, you felt miserable all night so you cried most of the night and got very little sleep. the first thing you did was order coffee in hopes when room service comes with your coffee you can get woken up a bit ready for the last day of the con. You decided to check your phone as you waited for room service and noticed you had texts from Rich who was in the room next to Rob's.

Rich: are you okay? I heard the shouting what happened Y/N?

Rich: I know it seemed like I want information from you but I don't I just heard you trying to defend yourself but Rob told you to leave I just want to make sure you're okay

Rich: Good Morning how you doing after last night?

You decided you should reply to Rich.

You: Well I don't know if you heard or Rob told you but he accused me of cheating and broke up with me , it's all my fault I did something dumb and  I'm single I guess oh and Rob said he never wanted to go out with me after I told him I loved him so not the best night I guess but I'm fine, just kind of bummed out because I genuinely love Rob and I royally fucked it up :/

Rich: what did you do? maybe I should talk to him for you

You: No Rich, just please don't get involved.

At the con you successfully avoided Rob until lunch time, probably thanks to him trying to avoid you too, people could see something was up and Misha tried to get you to talk but you just asked him to leave you alone so he did. After lunch it was your panel and if course Rob and Rich were introducing you.

"And now please welcome to the stage  the wonderful, the magnificent Y/N L/N!" Rich shouted and the band began to play.

"Thank you Rich." You said with wide, fake, smile. They left the stage you avoided any eye contact with Rob.  Half way through the panel you got a question you didn't want to get.

"So I asked Rob this yesterday..." She started and you began thinking oh no but instead offered a gentle smile. "And his answer was quite special but what is one thing you love about him? Because you guys seem like amazing friends." The girl said.

"I'd love to know his answer but my answer is I love that Rob is forgiving, like if I fuck up because I'm stupid and drunk he'd understand." You said with a smile yes it was a spiteful answer but you were mad at him and more at yourself.

"Aw, his answer was that you're just special, you even work with disabled kids in your spare time  which just makes you amazing and that we should all love you."

"Cute." You said rolling your eyes involuntarily. 

The panel lasted with a few questions about the cast and then of course someone had to bring up Rob again.

"I know you're sick of us asking every con but supposedly people saw you holding hands with Rob and I was wondering are you guys together yet?" That was it you couldn't take it anymore.

"You know I'll answer honestly, no, and we won't be. Sorry everyone but you're never going to see me date Rob because we aren't even good friends anymore he told me it was all a act and he was faking it, don't believe everything you see kids, some people just fake it.." You said anger erupting, you felt like you're about to cry. "And I don't want to sound rude but please I beg of you stop bringing up Rob I'm sick of talking about him." You said feeling like you we're stabbed in the chest, at least now you were sure that you love him. You took one more question before Rich and Rob appeared on stage. When you saw Rich you were thankful it was over. "Oh thank god." You said under your breath but the mic caught it and so did Rob. "That's my qui to leave thank you and have a nice rest of the convention." You said with a fake smile before turning around and sprinting off stage, you didn't notice it but Rob's eyes were fixed on you he watched you run off stage and wished he could follow you and hug you and say everything is okay but he was hurting, he heard what you said on stage about him and it pissed him off because you were the one who ruined everything for him.

You ran to the greenroom which luckily was empty you sat down at the table and began to cry uncomfortably. Misha, Rob and Rich walked in at the same time and they all saw you making their conversation die down suddenly. "Y/N, sweetie? Are you okay?" Misha said sitting down next to you and putting a hand on your back rubbing it in circles as Rob watched the interaction anger in his eyes.

"No, can you stop fucking getting near me, I hate you." You chocked out through the tears standing up and leaving Misha followed you towards the door.

"Y/N." He said softly but you ignored him. "Y/N." He said sternly, he didn't shout but it was loud enough to startle you and make you stop.

"Look you've been acting weird and now you hate me while all I try to do is comfort you? Please tell me why you're acting like this." He didn't shout but he was mad.

"Can we not have this conversation in front of everyone?" You said quietly.

"We're having this conversation because all of a sudden you hate me you hate /Rob/? Rob? Honestly Y/N what's up with that one minute you say tell me you're in love with him the next you two aren't speaking? Are you two even still dating?"   Misha said and you shut you're eyes trying to make yourself stop crying.

"Uh... I can answer that, we're not, we're done." Rob said answered from the couch.

"Why?" Misha questioned.

"Why do you think Misha?" You said causing Misha to realise why and you walked out the room even though you weren't meant to without your handler. When you finally complete everything you had to that day you went back to the hotel and to your room. You successfully avoided everyone and the best part was that you were the only one flying to Vancouver as Misha was flying to see his wife and family. When you got to Vancouver you decided you're moving out from Misha's apartment so you just took your stuff and went to the set and decided you're gonna live in your small trailer until you finish filming, next week.

The week  of filming was excruciating. The hours were long and all you wanted to do was to go to LA, home, lie down in bed and cry. Honestly all it took was just a sad thought and you were in tears, Jared and Jensen were amazing to you, Misha told them about the fight and they agreed to be quite about it, and they didn't tease you at all they actually tried to comfort you and invited you round a lot but you kept refusing until the last night. "Come on Y/N it's your last day up here with us on set please join us for drinks in my trailer." Jared said and you agreed. You had a nice night, some drinks got you speaking and it was nice to finally explain to someone everything that happened and how shitty you've been feeling over the last week. "You know I've always been the most fucking careful human, I've always been just a ball of pure anxiety, I mean even going to order something at Starbucks I practice the order fifty times in my head but Rob made me calm and fearless, I felt safe and then I had to screw it up by getting drunk and sleeping with Misha." You said for the thousandth time, you were beating yourself up for it you wanted nothing more than to call Rob and apologies but you knew you can't, he wouldn't forgive you.

When you got back to LA it was Thursday and you realised you had some of Rob's stuff lying around your house from the times he casually left stuff at yours, you boxed it all up and decided you have to call Rob.

"Hello?" He answered making you happy to hear his voice.

"Hi, I know probably the last thing you want to do is see me but I have some of your stuff at my house that you left and I was thinking when would you like to pick it up?" You asked careful not to say anything to anger him.

"Oh what stuff?" Rob asked.

"Um, I've got your jacket, your iPhone charger um, one of your t-shirts, a shirt, uh, oh and the book you gave me to read."

"Oh okay, um I'm about to go on the plane for tomorrow's con,  so maybe after the con I'll pick that up? Minus the book I told you I've read it, and it's a good book, you should read it." He said with small gaps for thinking  between sentences.

"Okay yeah and I've read it, it's amazing." You explained.

"Oh? Really? It's like over a thousand pages." Rob said surprised.

"Yeah I know." You giggled. "I'm a book nerd, I read fast plus I hate planes it's relaxing to read on them you know go into a fictional world forget real life, I like that." You said you felt so happy you and Rob were talking as if nothing happened maybe he was starting to forgive you.

"Yeah I like that about books too, anyway I need to go my flight is boarding, I'll speak to you soon."

"Bye Rob." You said slightly saddened.

"Bye." He said ending the call. You spent the rest of the day just thinking, why was Rob so nice now, did he forgive you? Was he just pretending? Did he miss you like you missed him? Or was it simply because he didn't want to make a scene?

Part 7

More Rob

Rob lovers:  @waywardswain @supernatural-everyday @winchestergirl-13 @perksofbeingafangirl26 @natasha-cole @girl-next-door-writes @itsfunnierin-enochian

[actualizeme]

undefined

This is my 8th day in self-isolation/quarantine. I’me bored out of my mind.

And this is not good for my wallet.

As someone who is currently carless and unemployed, this is not a good time for me to do a run on my money. It’s been 2 weeks since the car accident - where I totaled ANOTHER freaking car. And this one is/was a stunner.

BMW X3 with the works. As in the steering wheel was even heated.

Totaled. Gone. Buh bye.

And this was when I was driving with my son to visit my mother. Knowing it was the last window to visit before a massive shutdown.

THANK GOD, my son had his seatbelt on. He had an abrasion on his neck from the seatbelt. AND, no one from either car went to the hospital. While I hate to say this, it may have been a lifesaver for my mom that we didn’t make it to her. I had thought my cough was done, but it came back and got more serious after our stay in NYC with my amazing friend who was there when my family wasn’t.

It was an awful experience. And the 2nd with my son. 3rd totaled car overall.

And when it happened, the car called BMW support and coordinated with police and emergency response to get help as soon as possible.

We were on the Verrazano Bridge and we had just looked at Manhattan and when the car in front of the one in front of me was stopped...stopping the car in front of me...causing me to slam on my brakes. I slammed of the brakes, screaming, “NO!”

My son and I were ok. The other cars were ok as well.

It’s hard to look at such an accident as a positive, but everyone was ok. And I didn’t bring my cough to my mother.

BTW - my mother is 91, with dementia. She cannot be exposed to any cold, virus, or anything.

So, BMW is coordinating the towing of my car to a collision shop. Mind you that it is Saturday around 6pm. Turns out that 278 East is a restricted highway and you have to be licensed to tow from it.

BMW is not authorized.

That means I have to pay an authorized tower to take the totaled car to a safe location where the BMW tow truck can take it to the BMW of Brooklyn.

While waiting for the tow truck, my son and I are on the side, absolutely freezing. It was about 40 degrees with wind. Somehow, we had remembered to bring our winter jackets (we were coming from Virginia, just a bit warmer than NYC this year). As we waited, I called my LI family to help us. Asking for my brother to come and pick us up.

It was myself and my son alone, stranded on the side of the road.

I was told that he was just back from a vacation, and tired, and why was I coming up at all?

I’ve never felt so rejected in my life.

I’m helpless, less than an hour away from my childhood home - where my brothers still live with my mother - with MY SON!

I blocked my brother.

And so we get to my friend who saved us.

She rarely checks Facebook, and she happened to see my post about the crash. I reach out and my son and I now have a place to stay. Thank god as I was spending the last few $$s I had to see my mother.

So, BMW offers an UBER to any location within 90 miles. They are so accommodating - this is why you go BMW.They are so helpful and calm. I love BMW.

I give BMW my friends address on the UWS of Manhattan. The accident was in Brooklyn. Anyone who is familiar with NYC, you know that it’s about an hour between the two.

We are instructed to leave the towed truck, with the key, at the highway towers location so they can pick it up and take it to BMW. Well, it’s about 6;30 now. This doesn’t mean anything to me just yet.

We call the UBER with the info provided to come pick us up. And we wait outside by the car. And we wait. And wait. Outside. After awhile, we see a starbucks nearby and go in. My poor son is tired, stressed, and trying to comfort me. He saw how poorly my family responded and understood we were at a loss.

After 1.5 hours of waiting, my dear fiend sends a lyft for us. And what happens after we are picked up? The guy who had originally picked up the fare for UBER, then dumped us, calls and is pissed that we had left. I told his to suck it, in so many words - my son was there!

We finally arrive and my godsend of a friend ordered pizza for us and let us use her bed. I’m so blessed to have friends like her.

Now this is where things get tricky.

My son and I love flea markets and vintage things. So, we so that there was an open air flea market open. And it’s a gorgeous day and we need to leasve the apartment.

We go and mill about. My son buys an old short wave radio and I buy an antique coin purse. We are mixing with NYers. We were using hand sanitizer, but not social distancing. Have to give a shout out to the pizza stand there - amazing! I could live on that...stuff!

All the while, I’m coughing.

We go back to my friends and we are having a great time catching up and just enjoying each others company. I can’t help but think about how much I love her and how much I appreciate her. She’s been there for me more than anyone else in my life. A constant. I will always be indebted to her.

OK, so next morning, she’s up and out the door to go to work.

My son and I get up and take our time for the morning. I go to the deli for breakfast and coffee. Needed that jolt of caffeine big time. Now, it’s time to figure out is if I need to stay in NY, can go back to VA, and how to do that.

After trying to figure out different ways to get home - none that need a credit card at pick up or in person - we end up taking a train.

Naturally, I book a good seat for us. Problem is that the train leaves in 30 minutes. We are on the UWS and have to get to Penn Station.

LYFT to the rescue!!

As we race to the car, I’m watching the clock. In the car, I let the driver know we have a train to get to....And we watch the clock....we’re on time...we’re a minute late...we’re 3 minutes late...I check the schedule on amtrak.com and it’s on time - dammit!

We finally arrive and we are running like our lives are on the line.

And we missed it.

I almost started crying. And of course my son tries to calm me down. I can’t imagine my life without my son. He’s my rock more than he should be.

But all is not lost! Amtrak let’s you reschedule, so we got on the next - and last - train to DC. And my son’s father has agreed to pick us up form DC. He always comes thru.

And now. I sit here 2 weeks later, carless and in self-quarantine. Bored out of my mind. Still blocking my brother. Still in awe of my amazing friend.

But honestly, I’ll take this over two weeks ago!

[alicescripts]

Part 2, Chapter 4: Chain

A strip mall off the turnpike in New Jersey. Looking for lunch. From where I stand by my truck, this could be anywhere.

We must have decided this, right, at some point? That we wanted it all to look the same? And I can understand that decision. We all like to feel somewhere familiar. Now we can have that feeling wherever we are. No matter the climate or geography, you come inside the chain and you are exactly where you were before, like there was a magic door to the city you feel most comfortable in. It’s a positive that can’t be denied.

But we have paid a price for this.

Sylvia laughed and pulled my arm. “I know,” she said. “You’re thinkin’ your big thoughts so you can have something profound to say on the radio later, but I am starvin’!” “Can’t a lady have thoughts in peace occasionally? I said. “A lady spends all her time on her ass thinkin’ and right now it’s lunchtime,” she said. “Ooh, burgers!”

In between a Chipotle and a Quiznos was a store front that twisted my guts. I tried to process what I was seeing. “Let’s eat there,” Sylvia said, already walking toward it.

The design of the place was as clean and interchangeable as any other restaurant in the strip mall. But there was the sign in the shape of a burger. The sign said, “PRAXIS”.

The inside was a simple counter and a couple tables with plastic chairs. The wall was papered in comic book covers, although I didn’t recognize any of the characters. “Tiptoe Woman”, one was called. Another called “The Incredible Man who Cries.” “I might get a chicken sandwich,” Sylvia said. “Is that weird, getting chicken at a burger place?”

I forgot how alone I was til I wasn’t anymore. Having Sylvia here has been nice. And maybe I feel guilty about that, because she’s still a teenager, and she should be living in a stable home, going to school and being a kid, not circling this country with me. But I’m not the one that murdered Sylvia’s mother and left her with the same obsession I have.

She came to me for a specific reason, but first I have routes I need to run, and she’s content to run them with me. Bay and Creek is unlikely to fire me, but I have been flat out ignoring delivery schedules and I think I need to actually drive a truck for work occasionally.

“What can I get you?” The guy behind the counter had thinning hair under a little paper cap. The cap said “PRAXIS”. “Uh, what’s good?” I said. “Burger’s OK.” I ordered a burger and Sylvia, after some vacillation, did the same. He wrote up the order on a slip and pushed it to the woman at the grill without looking at her. “Two burgers up in a moment!” she said. The man did not acknowledge this. “What’s your name?” said Sylvia. “Ramon,” he said. “And I’m Donna!” said the woman in the kitchen, as she slapped a fistful of ground meat on the flat top and smashed it with a spatula. “He won’t introduce me, he doesn’t talk to me.” “Why not?” I asked. “I’ll have burgers out to you in a moment,” Ramon said. “We’ve been running this business together for five years,” said Donna, “and he has never spoken to me.” “Is that true?” Sylvia asked Ramon. He scowled. “Our parents died,” Donna said. Ramon furiously cleaned the spotless counter with a rug. “They left us everything equally. Soon after their death, I sold their house, the house we grew up in. I didn’t have time to consult with him, and he hasn’t talked to me since. Order up!” Ramon carried them over. “Is it OK if I tell you something?” I asked. “Doubt I could stop you,” he said. “Someone hurt me, “ is aid, “betrayed me. And that has defined what my life has been for every second of every day after. And it has sucked. If I had any other choice I’d take it. if you have any other choice besides being defined by a feeling of betrayal, you should jump for it. jump for it like dry land to the drowned.” Ramon’s eyes softened. “You gotta forgive her some time, dude,” Sylvia said through a mouthful of burger. “This is really good, by the way.” [chewing noise]

He grunted, returning to the counter. The paper napkins all had the word “PRAXIS” on them. Sylvia took one and did a sketch of Ramon, holding a burger and giving a stone-faced thumbs up to the viewer. On our way out, she presented it to him. He said nothing as he accepted, but his lip twitched upwards. “Bye now!” said Donna from the kitchen. Ramon’s frown returned.

An hour later back on the road, I slapped the steering wheel, waking Sylvia up. “Christ, what?” she said. “Are we in danger?” “Ugh! I left my scarf at the burger place,” I said. [sighs] “Oh well. I guess that scarf belongs to them now.”

It’s hard to tell regions apart just by looking at the buildings now. A CVS is a CVS, a Starbucks is a Starbucks. I’m not here to moralize, I’m just telling you what it is to be a traveler now.

Every place is built like every place, and so the only thing that tells you that you’re moving is the nature that’s been allowed to stay.

As you head north, the trees shift from broad leafy canopies to the narrow spurs of conifers. And the mountains turn from big hills to great structures of rock, topped with vast slopes of untouched snow. Or , on another drive, the hills dot themselves away into nothing. And you realize you haven’t seen elevaton in hours, nor many trees, just a lot of grass and a lot of road. Or you leave behind a  wetter, greener climate, and you see the world around you fade from grass to kindling, to dirt and rocks and then, like a sign marking a border you didn’t know you were crossing, the first great cactus, harbinger of the waiting desert.

It’s up to nature to tell us we’re moving. Otherwise, each Kmart sign looks like each Kmart sign. Every Subway sandwich tastes the same.

A few days later, somewhere north of Madison, near Devil’s Lake. There was this big stretch of hotels with indoor water parks, for when the Wisconsin weather with the Wisconsin vacation. Near the hotel was a cluster of shopping centers, movie theaters, all the things you ned if your camping trip is forced indoors. We were scanning for somewhere to eat and Sylvia was of course the first one who saw it. “I guess they’re a chain,” she said. A burger-shaped sign. “PRAXIS”. “Mm, last one was good. Shall we?” Something in me was afraid, but something in me is always afraid, and I’ve gotten very good at quieting that part of me. So I led the way in.

“You forgot your scarf,” said Ramon. Donna waved at us from the kitchen. Sylvia and I froze, but Ramon was already bringing over my scarf, and Donna was indicating a table in the corner. “Wh- What are you doing here?” was the best I could manage. “Well, we hardly ever leave the business,” Donna said. “Lots to do,” Ramon said, folding up my scarf and putting it by me. “Same as last time?” “Uh, sure,” Sylvia said. “Weren’t you-“ She didn’t seem to know if this was a subject she wanted to look at too closely, but she went for it anyway. “Weren’t y’all in New Jersey last time we saw you?” Donna shrugged, splatting our patties on the grill. “We don’t get out much,” Ramon said, and then “Thanks,” said absently as Donna gave him the burgers. She stopped, hand still on one of the plates. “Did you just talk to me?” she said. “Well, like those two were saying,” he said not looking at her, “have to forgive sometime.” “Forgive?” Donna started laughing. “Oh ho ho honey, OK, I’m glad we’re talking now because we have some shit needs talking about.” We sat at the table not knowing what to do, caught between the mundanely awkward and the existentially impossible. “When they died, you just gave up!” Donna said. “You refused to talk through the choices we needed to make. So all that was left up to me. I was on my own, and I was scared, but scared isn’t any kind of excuse so I did what needed to be done. I settled the estate, I sold the house to pay the bills, because there were bills, you know. Medical bills, cemetery bills and all of the debt. And then once all of those choices were made, there you were to tell me I had done them wrong. And you just stopped talking to me, punishing me for the choices that you couldn’t make! And now, excuse me, now you fucking forgive me?!” Or something to that effect. “I didn’t do anything?” Ramon said. “Who was busy arranging the funeral?” “OH, the funeral!” said Donna. “Of course, forget all the bills and the estate, you planned an evening!”

Sylvia pulled my sleeve and we left them shouting at each other, burgers unserved and uneaten. Behind the shouting figure of Ramon, I could see Sylvia’s drawing tacked up on the wall next to the cash register.

Stopped at a Dunkin’ Donuts that had a drive-thru window. And visible to the costumers, there was a huge screen tracking the percentage the employees were hitting of their “productivity target”. It was at 67 per cent. This per cent is 67 per cent of what they’re supposed to be. We are 33 per cent disappointed.

It’s terrifying what we’ve allowed them to do to us, so we could get coffee a few seconds faster. It’s a trade we all made, but we were never given time to think through the ramifications.

On the highway between Houston and New Orleans, a stretch of bayou and of absolutely  nothing else. Pulled off for gas and decided to get lunch too.

We both saw it, between an empty storefront with a half-collapsed banner saying “we buy gold” and a nail salon with only one employee, who was on a smoke break outside, staring up with unfocused eyes at he sky.

We didn’t even comment on it, we just went in past the sign that sais “PRAXIS”. “Hey,” Ramon said. “Hi there honeys!” said Donna. “You two seem happier,” said Sylvia. “We worked things out,” Donna said. “Maybe we both had to forgive and both be forgiven,” said Ramon. “It’s nice that you’re back. You’ll be one of our last customers.” Donna put two patties on the flat top without waiting for our order. “Oh, you’re uh.. closing up this place?” I said. “Running the business that our parents ran,” said Donna. “It was holding us back, keeping us in the same place mentally. We need to live our own lives. Thanks for visiting us along your travels!” “This restaurant has been in a different city every time we visited, “I said, wanting to confront it directly if this was my last chance. Ramon shrugged. “These things happen,” he said. “Do they?” said Sylvia. “What is Praxis?” I said. Donna smiled at me. “Oh honey, if you don’t know that yet, don’t worry. You’ll find out when it’s time.” She assembled the burgers and rang the little bell, even if Ramon was right there, his hands already out. “Thanks again for your business!”

Sylvia’s sketch was still tacked to the wall, but it had faded, and the edges of the napkin had gone brittle.

At a Bay and Creek center near Buffalo, I asked about the delivery I did last year to a factory in Florida. “Praxis”, the name on the factory had said. “What is Praxis?” I asked. The shift supervisor, who had been looking over her papers (and the days at) tedium, went stiff. “Where did you hear that name?” she said. “You assigned me a route for them last year.” “We certainly did not. You need to tell me everything, but hold on.” She got up, reached for a phone. “Not me, I don’t want to hear a word of this. I’ll call someone in here, and you are going to tell them everything you know about Praxis.” She started dialing and I got up and walked away. She shouted at me to wait, but I was most certainly not going to do that.

What is Praxis, and why did the name upset my Bay and Creek supervisor so much?

Hm. Another mystery for another day. It’s time to help Sylvia with what she came to me for.

I leave the truck, switch to a rented car. Sylvia sleeps in the back. Whew, that girl can sleep! Me, I have trouble sleeping in the best of situations. And I haven’t been in the best of situations in… well, years now probably.

We drive for hours through New York until we reach the Hudson river. In Kingston, on the western shore, there is this huge area of chain restaurants and box stores and strip malls. It looks like they kept the rest of the area picturesque by jamming all of that into a couple of square miles, which is a pretty good plan.

I drive around, looking for something specific. And I find it, next to a half-vacant mall anchored by a Target and what used to be a JC Pennies. There is a line of fast food franchises, and there is only one empty storefront.

We get out, and I ran my hand over the glass where the outline of the word “PRAXIS” is still visible. The inside is empty, all the furniture and fixtures removed. “Guess they really did move on,” Sylvia said. “How was that possible?” I asked. “We of all people are not in the position to go round asking those questions,” she said. “We start thinking about that, we’re liable to go off the deep end. Good Lord!”

And so we get back in the car and cross the river. I head to the Taconic Parkway, passing a few Christmas tree farms and a number of horses wearing jackets. The Taconic is beautiful but narrow. Finally, we reach a gas station on the southern edge of Duchess County and I wake Sylvia up. When she has regained the world, she takes on a look of determined sorrow. “Yeah,” she said. “This is where my mother was murdered.” “What now?” I said. “Now… We’re going to figure out who really murdered her.”

[right speaker] Knock knock. [left speaker] Who’s there? [right] I think you know. [left] I do. [right] Can I come in? [left] I don’t think so. [right] Come on. [left] I need you to leave! [right] That was never an option. Knock knock. Knock knock. Knock knock. [sighs] OK well, OK.

[afirethatcannotdie]

so @kitchentour​ just read my college au (we are only just beginning) and we started talking about our love of domestic fluff and then she sent me a long list of ideas for outtakes, and then next thing you know i’m writing one. so this is for you, annie. welcome to the squad.

“What if Harry got sick while Louis was out of town and the other boys tried to take care of him but Harry is so sick and mopey and annoying?”

Harry comes to consciousness at the feeling of a finger poking him in the thigh. The lights of the room are blinding, and there’s an uncomfortable pain in his arm. This must be some kind of weird dream.

He closes his eyes, takes a deep breath, and then opens them again. Liam’s peering down at him, a concerned expression on his face. Zayn’s sitting on a couch a few feet away, sipping on a milkshake. Harry would love a milkshake.

“What’s goin’ on?” Harry asks. His throat feels raspy, and as he looks around the room, he realizes he’s in a hospital room. There’s an IV in his arm, one that leads to a bag of fluids, and he’s dressed in a flimsy blue paper gown. He’s not quite sure if he’s wearing pants.

“You passed out, you idiot,” Niall says, strolling into the room. He’s holding two cups of Starbucks coffee. He passes one to Liam, and then they both take a seat on either side of Zayn. “You know when they say not to work out after giving blood, they mean it?”

Suddenly, it all comes rushing back to Harry. The prick of the needle this morning, the nurse’s instructions to eat some cookies and take it easy, the feel of the treadmill under him as he started his run at the gym. He’d had to ten miles in preparation for his half marathon. Ten miles on a treadmill sounded like hell, but it was far to cold to run outside, so he decided to suck it up and get it done. Three miles in, he started to feel shaky and dazed, and then next thing he knew he was falling to the ground.

“You’re a bit of a moron, you know that?” Zayn asks. His face is a weird mixture of concern and disapproval, and Harry doesn’t like that he’s the one who put it there. “What were you thinking?”

“I don’t know,” Harry says, his head cloudy. He was thinking that he’d given blood many times, and nothing bad had ever happened. He was thinking that it’d be nice to get his workout over with on a Saturday morning so that he could relax for the weekend. “How bad is it?”

“You’ve got pretty bad dehydration,” Liam says. “They said they’re gonna send you home in a few hours. Did you even eat anything?”

Harry shakes his head. “They tried to get me to eat some cookies, but I said no because I’m in training.”

“Who gives a fuck about training?” Liam says, his voice raised. Niall flinches at the sound. “Harry, you have to be more careful. You can’t just go risking your life for literally no reason.”

“I’m sorry,” Harry says quietly. It feels a bit like when his mum would scold him for coming home late in high school. He does feel bad, mainly for the way they’re all looking at him with sad expressions on their faces.

“It’s alright, mate, we’re just glad you’re safe,” Niall says. “We’ll take you home and get you all better.”

Niall sets his coffee cup on a table and approaches Harry, not asking for permission before he curls up in the bed next to him. Harry wince when he jostles the IV, but Niall apologize and snuggles close. It’s like the beginning of freshman year, when they’d sometimes accidentally fall asleep in the same bed.

“What’d Lou say?” Harry asks, trying to reach his phone but unable because of how he’s tethered to the bed. “Was he pissed?”

Silence falls. “That’s, er, that’s the thing,” Zayn says, rubbing at his forehead. “We, uh, haven’t told him yet.”

“You what?”  Louis shouts. “Are you fucking dumb?”

Harry winces and pulls the phone away from his ear. They’ve just gotten back to the apartment, and Harry’s laying on the living room couch, tucked in under a pile of blankets (courtesy of Niall) with a gallon of water at his side (courtesy of Zayn). He can still hear Louis’ voice on the line, anger lacing his tone, and he counts to three before he puts the phone back to his ear.

“—monumentally stupid idea, you know we’ve talked about this, you can’t push yourself so hard, I swear one day—”

“Lou, baby,” Harry says softly, interrupting Louis’ tirade with two words. “I’m alright. It’s gonna be fine.”

Louis takes a deep breath, like he’s preparing to yell for another ten minutes, but then he lets it out slowly. “You better be.”

“I am, I swear it. Listen, I’m feeling better already.” That’s not quite true, but what Louis doesn’t know won’t hurt him.

“Are you sure?”

“Have I ever lied to you before?”

“Dozens of times,” Louis says, but he laughs, which is all that Harry wanted anyway. “Do you want me to come home and take care of you?”

“I can’t ask you to leave your conference,” Harry says. Louis has been looking to this theater conference in Virginia for months. “How is it going, by the way? The pictures you send me looked sick.”

“It’s good,” Louis says, and he sounds distracted. “But we already performed, and we’re just hanging around until Monday. I’ll come home. On the off chance we win an award, someone else can accept it.”

“Louis William. You’re staying there to have fun, and I’ll see you on Monday when you come home. I’ll be fine. I’ve got the boys here if anything should happen.”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m worried about,” Louis says quietly. “Hey, can you pass the phone to Niall? I want to talk to him real quick.”

“Sure,” Harry tells him, and then he yells for Niall to come help.

“What’s wrong, what hurts?” Niall says, running into the room and nearly slipping on the hardwood floor in his socks.

“It’s Lou,” Harry says. “He wants to talk to you. Bye, Lou, love you.”

Niall looks vaguely irritated, like he ran into the room expecting Harry to be bleeding from his head and he’s disappointed to find that he’s not.

“Bye, baby. Love you more.”

Niall takes the phone away from Harry before Harry can do something stupid like cry. “I’ve got food on the stove, Tommo, this better be good.”

A pause.

“Yes, Louis, I am actually making some soup for him right now. No, he doesn’t have a fever. God, the two of you are insufferable. Yes, I am taking care of him.” Niall walks into the kitchen, still holding Harry’s phone, and there’s nothing Harry can do about it. Distant murmurs of conversation are all he can hear, and then he closes his eyes and drifts off.

When he wakes up for the third time that day, the room is empty and the house silent. There’s no one around.

“Niall? Liam? Zayn?” No answer.

His head falls back against the pillows. He looks around for his phone as his stomach rumbles, and then remembers that Niall took it when he was talking to Louis. Fuck. He’s really hungry, and his head still hurts, and he misses Louis.

“Niall!” he yells louder. “Liam, where are you?”

Silence.

“LIAM!”

Liam’s bedroom door opens, and he pops his head out. “Harry, what the fuck’s going on?”

“I’m hungry and my head hurts and I need food,” Harry says. “Can you get me some food?”

“Sure,” Liam says. “Niall made some soup but you fell asleep before you could eat it.”

“Can you get it for me? And my phone too? Please? I wanna text Lou.”

“Sure,” Liam says after a minute. Harry settles back and closes his eyes while he waits for the soup.

Don’t fall back to sleep this time, don’t do it.

He does indeed manage to stay awake until Liam returns with a tray of soup, a glass of water, and… a flower in a vase?

“Lou insisted we add the flower, “ Liam grumbles. “It’s like he’s your mum or something.”

“He loves me,” Harry says happily, reaching to brush his fingers over the flower petals. It’s one of the fake ones from the arrangement in their kitchen, but that doesn’t make it any less adorable of a gesture. “Thanks, Liam.”

Liam settles the tray in Harry’s lap, hands him the phone — one message from Louis, checking in to see how he’s feeling; Harry replies with a doing great! xx — and tells him to drink up the water. He stands up, looking like he intends to head back to his room, and Harry wraps two fingers around his wrist to stop him.

“Can you stay?” Harry asks, and his voice sounds pitiful even to his own ears. “Just for a bit? Tell me a story or something?”

Liam hesitates, and then nods, taking a seat at the end of the couch. “What do you want to hear about?”

“Anything,” Harry says immediately. “It’s too quiet here and I’m bored.”

“Alright. You want to hear about the awful movie me and Sophia saw last week?”

Harry nods, and then he loses himself in Liam’s words. He feels like shit, and it’s nice to have someone to pay attention to him for a little bit.

Fifteen minutes later, Liam interrupts his story with a frown on his face. “Harry, why haven’t you eaten all the soup?”

Harry looks down at the bowl. It’s half empty. “It’s fine, I don’t want all of it.”

“Haz, you gotta eat it all.”

“It’s fine, I’m not that hungry anymore.”

“Eat it, please, Harry,” Niall says, coming down the stairs from his bedroom with a blanket wrapped around his shoulders. “I don’t want you to get sick again, or worse, have Louis yell at me for an hour.”

“Finish the soup,” Zayn says, popping his head out of his bedroom door.

“I hate this,” Harry says, pouting. All the same, he gives in to the glares of his roommates and dutifully finishes the soup.

“Are you warm enough?” Niall asks. “Do you want a blanket or a book to read or another story?”

“I’m not a five year old,” Harry grumbles, swatting Niall’s hand away from his forehead. “I’m fine.”

“Harry, you had to go to the hospital because you passed out from dehydration. Drink some more water.”

“I hate this,” Harry repeats. “Stop babying me.”

“Fine,” Niall says. “If you want us to leave you alone, we’ll do that.”

Niall and Liam share a look, and logically Harry knows that it’s probably about how annoying he’s being, but he can’t help it. He watches them leave for their separate rooms, and then he’s left alone again.

He spends some time on his phone, playing Words With Friends with Gemma, but then she stops taking her turns and he figures she’s found better things to do. He doesn’t text Louis, because he doesn’t want to worry him. If he tells Louis how pitiful he feels, Louis will fly home, and he can’t have that happen.

He considers it an impressive feat that he makes it a whole forty three minutes of sitting in silence before he starts to go out of his mind with boredom again.

“Zayn?” he calls. A beat of silence passes, and then Zayn appears in the hall. “Can we watch a movie?”

“I thought you didn’t want anyone to bother you.”

“I take it back. I want to watch a movie.”

“Alright, but I have to work on my homework during it.”

“That’s fine. Can we watch Love Actually?”

Zayn sighs heavily and then nods before finding the disc at the top of the pile and starting the film. Louis would watch it with me, Harry thinks pitifully.

If only Louis were here. Harry wouldn’t have to ask or feel like he was bothering anyone or tell them what he wanted. Louis would know exactly what to do.

An hour into the movie, Harry’s stomach rumbles ferociously. He ignores it, but then it happens a second time, and then shortly after, a third. “I’m hungry.”

“Aren’t we all,” Zayn says, attention not wavering from the laptop screen in front of him.

“Can we order some food? Where’s Niall? Niall will totally order something with me.”

“Don’t even think about getting up,” Zayn says just as Harry starts to push the blankets back.

“But I have to pee.”

“Well you could’ve just said that.” Zayn rolls his eyes. He watches as Harry walks to the bathroom, feeling a bit unsteady. “If you’re not back out here in six minutes, I’m coming in to check on you, alright?”

He makes it back to the living room without interruption. When he gets there, he sees Jesy in the living room, perched on the couch next to Zayn, Niall, and Liam. What is she doing here?

“How’s everyone’s favorite patient?” she asks.

“Not very patient,” Zayn says. “He keeps trying to get up and do things, and he’s being whiny.”

“I’m hungry!” Harry protests.

“So Liam said. He sent me to cook dinner for you.”

“I think a girl could fix this problem,” Liam adds.

“That’s clearly not the case,” Jesy says, eyebrows raised.”

“Absolute sexism,” Harry grumbles. “We can’t have that. Besides, Jesy, you’re shit at cooking. No offense, I mean.”

“None taken. That’s why I brought a frozen pizza.”

“Well, the girls and I drew straws and I’m the one who got sent over. So the pizza’s in the oven, and you’re going to shut up, eat it, and let the rest of us carry on. You’re not dying.”

“You’re acting like Kim in that episode where she loses her earring. People are dying, Kim! And you’re not one of them, Harry,” Zayn says.

“Thanks ever so much for your contribution,” Harry says, trying and failing not to sound snarky. “I’m sorry  that you’re all angry with me, but I miss my boyfriend and I am dehydrated and I miss my boyfriend and you all suck a little bit right now.”

No one says anything.

“Louis wouldn’t treat me like this,” he says quietly, taking a sip of water.

“Well, you told Louis to stay where he is,” Niall says, “and that’s your problem.”

“I hate it.”

It’s a testament to the fact that they all know him well enough to let it go, just continue to watch the movie in silence and bring him some pizza when it’s ready. He knows he’s acting like a whiny, entitled brat, but he wants to curl up with Louis, have his hair played with, and fall asleep. And he can’t do any of that when Louis isn’t here.

He ends up going to bed around nine, more for something to do than anything. Alone in the too-big bed, he ends up staring at the wall, trying to count sheep and staring at the framed picture of him and Louis that hangs next to the door.

Around 11:30, Niall checks on him, apologizing for bothering him all day.

“No, it was me that was an asshole,” Harry says, sitting up against the headboard and patting for Niall to join him. He takes a seat on the edge of the bed and holds his hand out for Harry to hold. “I was a brat.”

“It’s alright,” Niall says with a shrug. “Well, it was annoying, but we all have our moments. It’s shitty to be sick. I’m sorry Lou’s not here.”

“‘S’alright, he’ll be home in a few days,” Harry says quietly, looking down at the text he’d gotten from Louis a few minutes ago. Get some sleep and feel better. Love you, see you soon xx

“Want me to tuck you in?”

Harry laughs. “Yes please.”

He’s eating breakfast in the kitchen the next day, oatmeal with fruit prepared lovingly by Zayn, who has forgiven him for his outburst, when the door opens.

Harry’s eyes widen, because if Zayn is sitting next to him and Liam’s scooping more oatmeal into a bowl and Niall’s sitting on the kitchen counter, that must mean…

“Hello?” Louis asks from the hallway, and Harry’s blood turns hot. “Anybody home?”

Harry sets down his bowl with a loud clanging and scrambles out of his seat. He can’t move fast enough, not when Louis is, against all odds, standing in the front hallway.

“Hi,” Louis breathes, and Harry’s sure that he looks great but he doesn’t even get more than a second to look at him before he’s charging towards him and enveloping him in a hug. “Whoa, whoa, slow down, it’s alright.”

Harry presses a kiss to his shoulder and breathes Louis in as he squeezes him tight by the waist. He inhales sharply when Louis squeezes him back. He’s actually here.

“You’re here,” Harry says softly, and then the tears start to fall. Louis holds him for a minute, and then draws back and runs his thumbs along Harry’s cheeks, wiping the tears away.

“Took the first flight out this morning,” Louis says. “Let’s sit down, I don’t want you to stand for too long when you’re still sick.”

“I’m fine,” Harry starts to say, but Louis shushes him and leads him to the couch, pulling him down so that they’re stretched out and he’s enveloped in Louis’ arms.

“How are you doing, baby?” He runs his fingers through Harry’s hair tenderly. The curls tumble down to graze Harry’s shoulders, and Harry isn’t sure who loves it more, him or Louis. He closes his eyes and considers it.

“Better, now. Much better.”

“Good.”

“I can’t believe you ditched your conference.”

"It's fine. It was boring anyway. And I heard some insider info that our show didn't even win, so it's no big deal."

"You came back for me," Harry says with a grin, trailing his fingertips down Louis' cheek.

"Alright, fine," Louis says, his face bursting into a smile. "I came back for you."

They spend the rest of the day cuddled up together, exactly like Harry was dreaming of the day before, talking when he wants to and silent when he doesn’t, and he wonders how in the world he got so lucky to be loved by Louis Tomlinson.